A Common Criminal Or Something
by College Fool
Summary: Jaune Arc was the descendant of heroes who never had an honest chance to be a Hunter. Jaune was just a common criminal who never had a choice in the matter. Falls from grace are never elegant, and Jaune's is no different. A story told in shorts, with an emphasis on 'short.' Now complete.
1. Common Criminal 1

A Common Criminal or Something

* * *

Summary: Jaune Arc was the descendant of heroes who never had an honest chance to be a Hunter. Jaune was just a common criminal.

Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY. It belongs to RoosterTeeth, and the memory of the master of computer animation. May your brainchild keep moving forward, Monty.

* * *

 _"When a man is denied the right to live the life he believes in, he has no choice but to become an outlaw."_

-Nelson Mandela

* * *

Jaune Arc never had an honest chance at becoming a Hunter at Beacon. Not really. Too weak (to earn the right by combat), too stupid (to earn a spot by scholarship), too poor (to afford tutors and training and equipment), too awkward (to convince anyone who mattered that he deserved the chance). No family to train him (back when they had the chance), no one else to support him (not after the plague that left him the last of his line).

Not having a chance, he made a choice. To compromise his morality- to pay a criminal to forge transcripts. A little white lie for a fresh start in life and in the city.

Was it the wrong choice? Most would say yes- but the 'why' would differ. Was it wrong because he compromised his morals, his integrity, to steal and opportunity he had not earned and did not deserve?

Or was it the wrong choice because it failed?

Jaune Arc was too much of too many things, including too gullible. Too careless, to have lost what money he had to a scam artist who promised forged transcripts. Too prideful to return to distant relatives in defeat. Too hungry and desperate to resist selling down hand-me-downs that others would recognize as relics and heirlooms.

Too pathetic indeed. So much so that the third-rate pawn shop owner offered pity.

"If you're that desperate for work, I know a guy who needs bodies willing to work without asking questions. You seem strong enough, and he's not looking for brains."

Jaune Arc ignored the insult and took the offer, choosing a full belly over saintly starvation and pretending he didn't know the path he was going down.

* * *

Author Notes:

Second of the 'Or Something' series, in which Jaune has a different path besides being a Hunter. The pieces start short, but will grow longer as his career progresses. This will be a significantly different style, tone, and scale than 'A Farmer or Something.'


	2. Common Criminal 2

A Common Criminal or Something

* * *

Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY. It belongs to RoosterTeeth, and the memory of the master of computer animation. May your brainchild keep moving forward, Monty.

* * *

 _"When a man is denied the right to live the life he believes in, he has no choice but to become an outlaw."_

-Nelson Mandela

* * *

Hei Xiong didn't seem like a bad man. He paid good money, was courteous enough for customers, and didn't serve alcohol to minors. He even had an Employee of the Month board, just to show how much the Management cared. (Of course, any business who has to do such a thing to show how much they care, just ends up showing how much they don't care at all.)

Hei Xiong didn't seem like a bad man, until he had reason to be. Anger, ego, or just a little bit of money was reason enough- to not give answers certain people wouldn't want known, or to ask very hard questions that people did want known, or to move things with no questions at all.

Jaune was a mover. It was simple work- go to a place, find bag or box, move to other place. Don't ask who wants it moved, don't ask why, and most importantly don't ask what it was. Mr. Xiong paid good money for the sort of people who lacked the curiosity or intelligence to care what they moved. You didn't have a choice in what you move, not if you wanted to keep the job and stay off the streets and keep the mob off your back. The mob had views about squealers and quitters.

Jaune didn't think he had moved any dead bodies, and that was reason enough to choose to keep quiet and keep getting paid. Even if what he had moved may have made more dead bodies. But that wasn't his fault- he didn't affect who used what or why. He was just a mover.

He just… moved things that the law probably wouldn't look kindly on. But that didn't make him a bad person. Not yet. Just the most common sort of criminal.

* * *

Author Notes:

For those who don't remember, Hei Xiong is Junior.


	3. Common Criminal 3

A Common Criminal or Something

* * *

Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY. It belongs to RoosterTeeth, and the memory of the master of computer animation. May your brainchild keep moving forward, Monty.

* * *

 _"When a man is denied the right to live the life he believes in, he has no choice but to become an outlaw."_

-Nelson Mandela

* * *

Jaune's promotion to hired muscle is more out of convenience than anything else. He had showed up to work, had a suit thrown in his face, and been told to go to the floor.

"Lazy bastard decided to up and quit on me at the last minute," Hei Xiong had said. "He doesn't want to show up for his job, it's yours. Just stay out of the way, keep the customers out of trouble, and for the love of Remnant don't flirt with anyone, especially the Twins. Even if they flirt first."

Bouncers got paid to stand around and look tough. The best way to look tough was to not do anything that showed how tough you weren't. Let the cheap suit and the other dozen bouncers just like you intimidate the troublemakers. If it looked serious, if there was someone with real strength, let the shift boss know and the Twins would take care of it. They earned their free drinks by having their fun with troublemakers.

It also paid 100 lien more a week. It was an easy choice.

He wasn't doing anything bad. In fact, you could almost say he was doing something good- helping keep the peace, protecting the customers. It was easy work… not least because he didn't really have to do anything at all but stand there and look tough. It wasn't hard, with the shades.

Then, one night, a blonde bombshell walked into the club and things got very hard indeed.

* * *

Author Notes:

Jaune in the goon suit with the red glasses is his signature look for this fic. If anyone draws it, let me know- if it's good enough, I'd even make it the story image.


	4. Common Criminal 4

A Common Criminal or Something

* * *

Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY. It belongs to RoosterTeeth, and the memory of the master of computer animation. May your brainchild keep moving forward, Monty.

* * *

 _"When a man is denied the right to live the life he believes in, he has no choice but to become an outlaw."_

-Nelson Mandela

* * *

He wasn't sure if it was morality or cowardliness that moved him in the opposite direction. When the first punches flew, when the first bodies went flying, Jaune had two thoughts.

'Shit! I don't want to be hit like that!'

And

'Keep the customers out of trouble!'

Well if there was one customer who was already trouble, she was it. Couldn't keep her out of it now. He could keep the others out of it, though. And really, what would one more mook like himself matter as everyone charged forward?

They were thoughts that seemed a lot wiser as gunshots and bullets began flying. Jaune had never had customers listen to him so eagerly and obey him so quickly before, even as he urged them out through the fire escapes.

As he did one last look around the room, to check if there were any other customers cowering in their booths, he found one. Some quivering girl, completely out of her depth and looking as brave as he felt. Her date had no doubt abandoned her, and she was paralyzed with fear. Braving ricochets, he ran and half-carried, half-dragged her to the exit.

Then the gunfire stopped. Not in a good way- the blond bombshell stood victorious over the bouncers. (Or was that what was good here?) He was the last one remaining. (Which was good, except that meant he would be next, which was very bad indeed.)

For a second, he caught her eyes. Already halfway out the door, cradling the customer, trying to get out of sight and fire. Instinctively he moved the customer behind him. No chance to escape her shells if she wanted to give even one more punch in his direction.

She didn't. She gave a contemptuous harumph and tilted her head with a nod. _'Get out of here_ ,' she might as well have said. Her attention moved to the Twins who had finally arrived, and he was irrelevant. Too lowly to even be worth considering a threat.

The customer came to her senses as soon as they were out the doors. She picked up and ran, without so much as a thanks.

Jaune watched her go, and wondered what he should do next. Could do next. The fight inside was so far beyond him it would be suicide to try to interfere. He guessed… well, he was a bouncer, right? He could keep people out, if there was anyone who tried to come in.

Not that many people walked up to a club at dawn…

"Mister, what's going on in there?"

* * *

Author Notes:

Various people have asked why the chapters are so short, why don't I write longer ones or post more at once. The shortest answer is 'reasons.' The flippant answer is 'because trolling is fun and I enjoy the tears of your frustration.' The real answer is a collection of reasons longer than this chapter, too long for an author note.

Bottom line: it ain't changing. Pieces (including the next) do get longer going forward, but daily short-updates is part of the deliberate style and strategy of this fic. Sure, it's a different taste and not for everyone- to which I say feel free to come back later. Rest assured that the entire story has already been written. Unless I kick the bucket it will all be posted, and if for some reason I do then the beta has a copy he can post.

But for those willing to try this out- I've done this style in the past to good effect (the 'Papa' fic on my profile), and it offers some unique opportunities for readers who slowly digest it over the long term rather than take in the entire story all at once. At the very least, it'll give you something unique to look forward to every day for the next few weeks.


	5. Common Criminal 5

A Common Criminal or Something

* * *

Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY. It belongs to RoosterTeeth, and the memory of the master of computer animation. May your brainchild keep moving forward, Monty.

* * *

 _"When a man is denied the right to live the life he believes in, he has no choice but to become an outlaw."_

-Nelson Mandela

* * *

She was a little girl, dressed in a black dress but defined by her red cape, a much gentler look than his black suit and red glasses. She was a picture of charming innocence and good intentions, whereas he was… well, most certainly not.

Maybe it was the uncomfortable suit that made him look older. Maybe it was the red shades that his eyes hid behind. Maybe it was that he was tall and she was short. Or maybe it was because he was stressed and running on adrenaline and didn't have time for niceties.

"Nothing, kid. Stay out of it," he said, meaner than he meant to, hoping she would be put off just the same.

She wasn't. Instead she raised an eyebrow over a skeptical silver eye. "Does nothing usually have people running away scared?" she asked, pointing in the direction the last customer had fled.

He sighed. "Just… trouble with a customer," he said, which might have been true. Had the Blonde Bombshell bought anything? "It's none of your business. Go home," he said bluntly.

"Want help?" she offered instead of leaving. There was a sound of gunshots, and explosions. "Need help?" she asked again.

" **No** ," Jaune said, annoyance coming through. "Look little girl," and boy did she not like being called that, "There's a demon going wild back there. It's my job to keep the customers **out** of trouble. Why would I let you **in**?" he asked. He softened a bit as rubbed his eyes behind his glasses. "It's not safe," he said, concern leaking through.

The girl's expression softened when she understood his reason, but she didn't give up. Instead she walked forward towards him, looking up and straight in the eyes.

"Lucky for you I'm not a customer, am I?" she asked with a smile. "I can help you," she offered, extending a hand. "Let me help you," she urged.

He stared at the young girl, uncertain and uneasy. He waited for the shoe to drop- the hint of greed or the glimmer of cunning subterfuge or thinly veiled contempt in her eyes. Everything he had seen from everyone since coming to this crime-infested city.

She just continued to look back, simple and sincere and with a faith he hadn't felt for some time. The kind that simply wanted to help others, with no thought or reward or self-interest, just because it was the right thing to do. If he took her hand- if he ignored the boss's rules but helped put a stop to this- would he-

His hand was halfway to hers when the building exploded. Mr. Xiong came flying out landing beside them with a thud and a groan. The Blonde Bombshell was right behind.

Jaune batted away the hand as he put himself between the Bombshell and the little girl. "Red, get out of here!" he ordered.

Red, once again, ignored him. Looking at the body of Xiong, and then the Bombshell, she didn't look the least bit concerned.

"Yang, is that you?" Red asked, and Jaune felt his blood run cold. Help didn't sound so lucky now.

"Oh, hey sis!" Bombshell responded, chipper and cheerful as if she hadn't just finished putting a dozen people halfway into the morgue.

"What are you doing here?!" Red demanded, scolding. "There's some demon whose been making trouble! We gotta help!"

"Demon, huh?" Bomshell said, looking at Jaune and raising an intimidating eyebrow. _So that's what you're calling me, huh?_ "And was this _fine_ " he caught the sarcasm, thank you very much, "gentlemen trying to get you to help fight the _nasty_ demon?"

Jaune raised his hands to wave a denial, but it was Red who saved him. "I was trying to convince him but he wouldn't let me," Red said with a pout. "Kept telling me to stay out of trouble."

The Blonde Bombshell known as Yang looked at him again and curled her lips in a smile. It had far too many teeth.

"Well sis, battle's done now. Demon's all gone. I got just one last thing to take care of before we leave." She walked forward towards them, towards Jaune, cocking her gauntlets.

Jaune stumbled back, falling over his own boss. Xiong groaned, but didn't stir. Red didn't make any move to intervene as Bombshell came closer and raised her arm. He closed his eyes, waiting for the pain.

Instead he felt something slide into his jacket and heard the girl stand. Confused, he opened his eyes and looked down- and instead of a smoking impact crater, found a 50 lien bill stuffed into his pocket.

"For your good work tonight, chum," Yang explained with a slightly mocking grin before leaving with Red in tow.

Jaune let out a relieved sigh as they left, thankful that they hadn't noticed his courage leave him. Whatever his reasons at the start of the night, he knew they certainly weren't brave- his courage was running down his leg.

* * *

Author Notes:

And that was how Jaune survived to be the last man standing in a bar fight Yang was involved in. Thug reputation up.


	6. Common Criminal 6

A Common Criminal or Something

* * *

Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY. It belongs to RoosterTeeth, and the memory of the master of computer animation. May your brainchild keep moving forward, Monty.

* * *

 _"When a man is denied the right to live the life he believes in, he has no choice but to become an outlaw."_

-Nelson Mandela

* * *

His survival earned him another job soon after. It wasn't a reward, per see- Xiong hadn't been happy that he had stayed out of the fight, but he hadn't been particularly upset either. It was more for the fact that Jaune was still alive and on his feat, when so many others weren't.

("You suck too much to have been able to make a difference," Xiong had said, more tactless than insulting. "But you did the next best thing. Fewer complaints and none of the customers got hurt, so you did better than the rest," he had said.)

Apparently he could 'think on his feet' and 'keep his mind open.' Which meant that when the next job needing muscle came around, he came _recommended_. And not just because many of the usual hires were still in body casts.

"I don't expect much from you," the man named Roman Torchwick had greeted. "Open latch, hold bag, carry dust. Think you can do that?" he asked, as if expecting a 'no.'

"I've moved heavier," Jaune answered. And he had- he wasn't strong, not like the really strong, but he wasn't lacking in muscle. But Torchwick tutted as he leaned on his cane.

"We're not moving dust, we're stealing it," he corrected. "You ever steal anything before, kiddo?"

"Just candy from a baby," Jaune admitted. His baby sister, actually, and she would probably have choked on it if he hadn't.

Roman actually paused in surprise, and then laughed. "What class! We've got a master thief in the making here, gentlemen," he said, looking at the other thugs Xiong had lent. They all laughed mookingly. (Which is a bit of a mix between mocking and sycophantic laughter.)

Jaune tried to fight down a flush with a glare. With the red sunglasses, it might have intimidated a toddler.

"It'll be easy," Roman deigned to encourage. "You're smart, you'll figure it out. Use your head and not just your muscle, and we won't even have to hurt anyone," he said with insincere cheer.

Jaune Arc paled. He would breaking the law with this, really breaking it. But if he didn't choose it- well, Mr. Xiong knew enough people in town that he'd never get another job as good as the one he'd had. Wouldn't even be able to walk down the street without checking over his shoulder. Even if he didn't squeal, the Mob had _views_ about quitters. Jaune Arc knew it was wrong knew he shouldn't- but it could be alright. or at least not that bad, Jaune thought, relaxing behind the sunglasses. It was wrong, but that alone didn't make him a bad person. As long as he kept from hurting anyone, kept anyone from actually getting hurt, he wouldn't be that bad, right?

Not yet. Still just a common criminal.

* * *

Author Notes:

Thanks to everyone who's reviewed about the style, for or against the format. For those who dislike it- thank you for your candor. For those who are finding themselves liking it- I'm glad something outside the norm stands out just a little bit more, and I hope it pays off for you.

Please keep those thoughts coming- not every chapter will be review-worthy, I'm sure, but this fic has a lot of developments as things add on. I'd love to keep hearing people's thoughts and speculations as things slowly change.


	7. Common Criminal 7

A Common Criminal or Something

* * *

Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY. It belongs to RoosterTeeth, and the memory of the master of computer animation. May your brainchild keep moving forward, Monty.

* * *

 _"When a man is denied the right to live the life he believes in, he has no choice but to become an outlaw."_

-Nelson Mandela

* * *

Obviously his second meeting with Red would be in the middle of a burglary.

It had been going so well, too- Roman had made the sort of threats that didn't actually need to be carried out, the dust was being loaded, and soon the shopkeeper would be safe and sound and filing a police report (and insurance claim) as another bloodless theft made the news.

When Jaune first heard the music, he had hoped it would be some radio he could just turn off. When he saw the outline of a figure, his mind scrambled on how he could get whoever it was out of sight and away from his fellow thugs. But when he recognized the figure, he hoped that he wouldn't be the one harmed- that the Blonde Bombshell sister wasn't nearby, that she wouldn't have cause to return to the Club.

That would be bad. It would mean Red had been hurt.

She didn't hear a goon turn the corner of the isle behind her- he had no time to hide her. Fighting was out. Talking was in. Jaune walked forward and tapped Red on the shoulder, getting her attention. Maybe, if he was lucky, she wouldn't recognize him and not blab him to the cops by the time this was over…

"Oh, hey, it's you!"

Or maybe she would recognize him.

"Yeah. Me," Jaune said, awkward at the familiarity. "What are you doing here so late, Red? The Blonde Bombshell around to cause trouble?"

The goon's eyes went wide at the name of the Club destroyer. Red looked a little down and kicked her feet bashfully.

"She's not here," Red said. "My sister got accepted into Beacon so she's out celebrating. Leaving me, well, alone," she said, and he empathized. "I just thought I'd check out the latest weapon magazines, and here I am," she said with a nervous laugh.

The goon's eyes widened with hope. Half a dozen grown men against one little girl? Jaune could see the hope as the man considered the odds.

Jaune tried to forestall it. "So your sister is a Huntress in training?" he asked, hoping that the implied power would get through to the mook. Book of Oum, Commandment of Common Sense Three: Thou shall not make enemies of the most powerful defenders of mankind by beating up their little siblings…

"Yang's going to be a hero," Red said proudly, before looking more excited. "Ooh, but I am too! I'm a student at Signal, and I'm training to go to be a Huntress too! It's always been a dream of mine and-" she began to ramble.

The goon's optimism went into a pensive doubt. Unfortunately Roman Torchwick took the opportunity to turn the corner and look towards them. His skeptical gaze and twitch of the cigar made an obvious intent.

'Why haven't you mugged her yet?' he might have asked.

"Signal Academy, that's an elite combat prep-school for future Hunters, right?" Jaune asked, hoping it would explain the situation to Roman. "You any good?" he asked, not sure if he should hope yes or no. If no, a dozen on one might seem like a good idea. If yes, a dozen on one wouldn't even be close to enough.

"Oh yeah!" Red exclaimed. "My Uncle is a teacher and says I'm really good! I've even already made my own weapon! Wanna see?" Without waiting for an answer, she twirled a rapidly unfolding machine with dramatic flair. In a matter of moments, Jaune was looking at the small girl holding a scythe nearly as big as she was.

Behind her, still unnoticed, Roman and the goon looked down the barrel of a sniper rifle with a caliber as wide as their eyes. The goon fled, all thoughts of ganging up on the girl forgotten. Roman's cigar dropped from his mouth in surprise. He rallied quickly though, and mouthed an order before turning and leaving as quietly as he could.

'Stall.'

"That's… big," Jaune admitted. A fine understatement for a fine and sunny night. "You really made that yourself?" he asked.

"Yup!" Red said, clearly happy with the topic. "It's not about size, though, but how you use it. Like-" what followed was a stream of techno-babble and modifications and capabilities that Jaune caught one word in six. Maybe. And understood maybe half of those. Who put a gun in a scythe? Wouldn't the barrel bend as you hit people with it?

"That's… impressive," he admitted, as sincere as he was taken aback. "You really like weapons, don't you?" he asked, still stalling for time.

Red fangirled. "Weapons are amazing!" she claimed. "They're like an extension of your soul! Someone's weapon says a lot about them. I just had to have the best weapon possible to be the best Hero I could be!" She began to geek out even more, and Jaune would be getting a crash course in weaponology if he weren't so lost.

One thing was for sure. If weapons reflected the soul, then she wasn't a simple soul at all, no matter how easily distracted she was.

* * *

Author Notes:

Congratulations, Jaune: you rolled a natural 20 on your charisma check. You have passed a speech check. With charisma that high (ha, yeah right), who needs combat skills?

This encounter was almost two-thousand words until I broke it in half. I'm honestly curious how long it stays below a thousand words a chapter.

Next time- Ruby and Jaune talk weapons, and what you should do if you've sold your soul. Kinda.


	8. Common Criminal 8

A Common Criminal or Something

* * *

Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY. It belongs to RoosterTeeth, and the memory of the master of computer animation. May your brainchild keep moving forward, Monty.

* * *

 _"When a man is denied the right to live the life he believes in, he has no choice but to become an outlaw."_

-Nelson Mandela

* * *

When he was finally able to understand her again, Red was gesturing at the magazine she had been reading when he interrupted her.

"-some people put a rocket or explosive into a hammer to give it more oomph. That's simple, but really only works if you can catch and overpower your opponent- great against grim, but less so against agile people. That's fine though, since a good hammer user would rather get along with you and only try to break your legs if you deserved it. People who use guns on the other hand are the sort of people who like to keep a distance from others, trying not to get hurt. Which isn't bad, I mean I use a gun, but you can't just rely on that you know? My sister, her gauntlets shoot, but she uses it to get up close and personal. Brawlers-"

Jaune skimmed the page as she explained her view on weapons and people. So many types of weapons, so many types of people that he would never be like. Sure, anyone with enough money could buy a weapon like Mr. Xiong's rocket-launcher-bat, but- his own thought trailed off as he saw the weapon featured on the next page.

"What about that one?" he asked before he could help himself.

Crocea Mors.

Red took one look at that and oohed. "That's a classic," she said with hushed respect. "That's a weapon with character right there. It's simple, but you got to respect something that holds up after all these years. The blade that doesn't have cracks after a century? That shows dedication, someone really cared enough to take care of it, and it's because of that perseverance that it's still useful. A shield that turns into a sheath? Protection and support. That's heirloom material right there, generations of respect and pride, and… eh?!" she exclaimed, reading the article further. "Sold to a pawnshop? Who does such a thing!?" she sounded affronted.

Jaune winced. "A guy without respect and pride." And an empty belly for not having eaten in three days. He didn't need to guess.

Red agreed with a scoff of contempt. "Some people have no respect for the classics. That's like selling your own soul right there. How about you, though? You got a weapon?" she asked.

Jaune shrugged uncomfortably. "I got this," he confessed, pulling out the red collapsible cleaver that he and all the other mooks had. He'd never used it- never even took it out to wave menacingly at a shopkeeper. In his hands, it was little more than a bluff.

Red took one look at his cleaver and laughed. "Cheap mass-produced garbage for thugs and low-lifes," she judged immediately, before pausing awkwardly. "Not, er, that that implies anything about you," she tried to backpedal.

"I know," Jaune admitted and agreed. "I just… can't do better," he sighed.

Which was true- partly because he didn't have the money, but partly because anything he might buy would be wasted in the hands of a novice like him. Cheap mass-produced garbage for a thug and amateur was all he deserved.

"I could help you be better," Red offered with a tentative, encouraging smile. "We could go to Signal and make you a weapon together. I'm sure they wouldn't mind. There's plenty of spare parts they wouldn't miss."

"I'm... probably too old to go back to Signal," Jaune said. "They didn't let me in before." Laughed in his face, was more like it. Poor scores, no talent, nothing but an old family name without any money behind it… "Besides, I wouldn't know how to use it," Jaune said.

"I can talk to my Uncle. He's a teacher there, I'm sure he could help you like he helped me. Ooh, and I'd help you too of course! What do you say?" she asked, extending her hand once again.

Once again, Jaune remembered the night at the Club. Once again, Red offered to help him do what he couldn't on his own. Once again, a glimmer of hope stirred somewhere within, and once again he wanted to reach forward and take her hand-

And once again, the reality of the situation reasserted itself. The mook popped his head around the corner behind Ruby, tilting urgently to indicate it was time to go. Time to finish robbing this store, with this girl who could beat them all senseless none the wiser.

"Thank you," Jaune said sincerely, "But I have to go now. Stay out of trouble and go home soon, Red," he said, walking past her with a friendly pat on the shoulder.

"Ruby. Ruby Rose," the girl said, silver eyes open and honest. "Let me know if you get the chance and want to try, uh…" she trailed off, never having gotten his name.

"Jaune," he replied without thinking. "Jaune A-" he paused, as much in shame as the sheer stupidity of giving your name during a burglary. "Just Jaune," he said, eyes hiding shamefully behind red sunglasses. "And," he began as he turned the corner, striding purposely past the frightened shopkeeper and towards the door. His fellow criminal were waiting for him.

"I think it's a bit late for that," he muttered, almost too quiet to hear.

He had almost turned the street when Red rushed out the door.

"It's never too late to make a fresh start, Just Jaune!" she called, loud enough to ensure his name would be right in the police reports to follow.

He didn't pause until after he turned the street. The rest of the crew stood waiting by the getaway vehicle, faces filled with disbelief and disgust. Roman summed up their thoughts for them.

"Kid," he began, "are you a total-"

* * *

Author Notes:

Congratulations, Jaune! You have rolled a natural 0! You have failed a speech check!

This is, in my view, one of the most important encounters in the entire story. Some of those reasons are obvious, some are subtle, and some will only make sense awhile from now, but it wouldn't be wrong to say that the entire premise of 'A Common Criminal' hinged on this one burglary. Had things gone just a little bit differently, at multiple points, what followed would have changed drastically.

Some people have raised the possibility that I am a sadist because of the short chapters. Let me ask you this- if I were a sadist, wouldn't I hurt Jaune some?


	9. Common Criminal 9

A Common Criminal or Something

* * *

Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY. It belongs to RoosterTeeth, and the memory of the master of computer animation. May your brainchild keep moving forward, Monty.

* * *

 _"When a man is denied the right to live the life he believes in, he has no choice but to become an outlaw."_

-Nelson Mandela

* * *

"Idiot!" Mr. Xiong shouted, fist impacting Jaune's face and hurting him. "What sort of _simpleton_ gives his name at a burglary?!" The bruising and swelling would match the shiner he had gotten from his fellow thieves on the way back.

"I'm sorry," Jaune Arc cried again, shame mixing with a wish to avoid further pain as he shielded his face.

Xiong only seemed angrier. "Sorry?" he demanded, kicking. "Sorry?! Sorry doesn't make up for what you just did! Do you know how much it costs to bribe the police to look away when your face and name is on the nightly news? When Suspect Number One is any guy with a suit in my Club?" he demanded.

"At least it's not my real face and name, right?" Jaune Arc said with a nervous laugh. And it wasn't- since Roman had stolen the security tapes, the police sketch for his face was just another anonymous mook with red sunglasses and a bowler hat. The most distinctive thing about it was the blonde hair. The news cast also continued to show 'Justin John' as his alias, the shop keeper having apparently misheard it.

He was rewarded for his poor humor with a kick to the liver. Behind the glasses Jaune shut up, and stopped trying defend himself. A little pain was better than making Mr. Xiong _really_ mad.

Xiong worked himself down from his previous temper. Turning away, he crossed his hands behind his back as he came to his final judgement.

"You're fired," he said simply.

"What?" Jaune said dumbly.

"Fired. Involuntary quitting. Pink slipped. Get-the-fuck-out-of-my-office-before-I-throw-you-out," Xiong said in other ways. "I don't need your fuck-up hanging around where people and the police could see, and I don't need you. You've got three hours to grab your stuff from your room and get the fuck out, and don't even think of running into my club for the next three months or else you'll find my club running into you," he threatened.

"But- where will I go?" Jaune Arc asked, desperation starting to grow. "What about my pay?" How was he going to afford shelter? Food? He couldn't afford to visit distant relatives in shame if he wanted to!

"Don't know, don't care," Xiong said. "You'll get your pay for the job on your way out the door, but nothing more from me."

Which, as far as mob bosses went, was pretty generous. Mr. Xiong had a reputation for keeping his deals- and his promises, threatening and otherwise. Still, Jaune walked out of the office in a daze and with a limp and not a clue as to how he could move forward. He had to lay low until the police had better things to do and worse people to look for, but without a job to pay for food and shelter…

"Hey. Kid. Need a job?"

It was Roman Torchwick, leaning against the wall behind him. The red-haired man had a calculating look in his eyes as he took in Jaune's roughed appearance.

"You want to hire me?" Jaune asked, certain there was a catch. 'After that?' went unsaid.

"You're an idiot, but you're not stupid," Roman judged. "Unlike the rest of these knuckleheads, you didn't try to fix every problem by hitting it. Hell, you talked down a Huntress-in-training in the middle of a robbery with her none the wiser, even though you were wearing a sleazy suit. I could use someone who doesn't think their brain is a muscle."

"What do you want me to do?" Jaune asked, trying to hedge his bets. If it was anything too extreme-

"Do you have a choice?" Roman asked bluntly. "I'm not asking you to hurt anyone- just deal with some muscle-bound jokers. The sort of people who also can't show their faces in public, if you get my drift. Come with me and you'll get paid to lay low. Or don't, starve, and get hauled in by the cops. It's your choice," he said with a shrug.

Some choice it was. Hunger and/or a life in jail for armed robbery of dust, or… whatever Roman was offering. Jaune liked food in his belly, and disliked the government's penalties for stealing strategic resources. Let alone what Schnee Corp was said to do to captured Dust thieves, informally… Jaune didn't want to become a prison yard 'example' for those who crossed the amoral megacorp. Jaune Arc probably wouldn't even survive it.

As he followed the infamous thief, a man braver than he for not even flinching at the prospect of what could happen if he were ever caught, it was Roman who broke the silence first. "You got a problem with faunus, kid?" he asked.

"Huh? No, never," Jaune answered honestly. It had never been a big deal what size or shape or even what number of ears you had where he grew up.

"That's nice, real progressive of you," Roman said with a touch of mockery as they stopped in front of a door. It had a blood-red drawing, a fierce beast's head with claw marks drawn through.

"Unfortunately, you're about to meet the sort of animals who have a problem with you. Try to get along- you'll be living in the barn for a while."

* * *

Author Notes:

Huh. What do you know, Jaune gets hurt. Guess there's a bit of a sadist in me after all. Well, I'm sure it's just a little- what's the worst mischief a common criminal could get up to?

It pleases me to see the speculation about just what's changed how much. I won't say much here- some answers would be spoilers- but I will say that I did keep the butterflies in mind when I wrote this. There are reasons for the differences, and reasons for the similarities, and I look forward to hearing your musings on what will lead to what. That said, one of the the drawbacks of this sort of writing style is that it's pretty minimalist- if I tried to show all the impacts and changes from canon, I'd never finish writing and never get around to posting. So... imagination! And a laser-like focus on Jaune, who clearly isn't around at Beacon to see.


	10. Common Criminal 10

A Common Criminal or Something

* * *

Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY. It belongs to RoosterTeeth, and the memory of the master of computer animation. May your brainchild keep moving forward, Monty.

* * *

 _"When a man is denied the right to live the life he believes in, he has no choice but to become an outlaw."_

-Nelson Mandela

* * *

Working with terrorists, it turned out, wasn't so different from working with any other sort of criminals. You had to stay low, pay black market mark-up for everything, and struggled to avoid the authorities or anyone who might recognize you mostly by staying inside with the blinds closed.

It was also surprisingly non-violent most of the time. It was a cycle of long periods of planning and preparation, with brief moments of tension with the _possibility_ of violence if he was unlucky or didn't plan things out well enough.

Jaune's job was to work as a liaison between Roman and the White Fang- more because Roman simply disliked working with Faunus than because he actually needed help. The White Fang paid its money, followed orders, and had a discipline instilled with hatred (and a bit of fear) that made the common cause work. Even if they hated his guts on general principle.

Well, that might be going a bit too far. He couldn't claim a single one of them as friends, but they were people who expected for racism to leak through from him, and kept being surprised when it didn't. It hadn't, wouldn't, but these Faunus had seen the worst of humanity. An ex-thug like himself wasn't about to wow them with character and principle, but the fact that he wasn't an ass to faunus went a long way.

Compared to Romans' thinly veiled contempt, relations were almost cordial with him. Sometimes. A few even smiled at him from time to time. Shared stories, shot the breeze, shared the boredom and passed the time rather than ignore him outright. Enough that, even though they were terrorists and not just criminals, they were people as well- people with hopes and dreams (and a whole lot of anger issues) as well. It was… tolerable.

And so time passed. A criminal's immoral deeds are never done- more stores were robbed, shipments of dust hijacked at gunpoint. Unlike the menacing blustering of the goons, the White Fang didn't mess around with idle threats. You gave them what they wanted when they wanted it, or else they took it. Even though they liked him enough to humor his requests to ask first- to give their victims a choice to give up the goods and keep their teeth- people still ended up getting hurt. Pity whoever was brave and good enough to try and stop them.

Jaune wasn't. But at least he wasn't the one doing the hurting, and trying to give them a chance to escape unharmed. Even if he was aiding and abetting terrorists, he was still just a common criminal… right?

* * *

Author Notes:

(Replaced the chapter with updated version with minor edits).

You know, something odd happened yesterday- for just a little while the number of reviews outnumbered the number of favorites and follows. That's pretty rare in fanfics- especially since many people who 'favorite' a work never actually review, and 'favorite' and 'follow' subscribers are often different people. (Which I've never understood- why follow and not favorite? Why do both but not review? Oh well.)

Anyways, that's a cool milestone for this fic. Next one will be if/when someone puts it in a C2 community. And you'll know you've really made it as a fanfic writer if someone adds it to the fanfic recommendation list at tvtropes. But the pinnacle? The pinnacle would be when someone makes a TVtropes page for your fanfic, and you even get someone to blog on it and people make threads on forums on it. That's only happened twice for me, but stumbling across a tvtropes page for your own fic years afterwards is cool, no lie.

We'll see how far it goes- after all, all of that depends on you readers.


	11. Common Criminal 11

A Common Criminal or Something

* * *

Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY. It belongs to RoosterTeeth, and the memory of the master of computer animation. May your brainchild keep moving forward, Monty.

* * *

" _When a man is denied the right to live the life he believes in, he has no choice but to become an outlaw."_

-Nelson Mandela

* * *

He was on guard duty at the docks for the simple reason of racism- because some people in this day in age would still prefer to not hire faunus at all rather than hire animals even at half-ages- or at least that a human guard standing lookout was less suspicious than a grimm-masked and heavily armed member of the White Fang. It had been a quiet night so far. No sign of anyone, nothing more suspicious than a carelessly tossed banana peel he hadn't noticed earlier in the night. Everything seemed to suggest that this heist would be quiet, painless, and bloodless as the best of them were.

Obviously that thought was when the explosion occurred, and the sound of gunshots soon echoed. He did not rush in to investigate the disturbance- a dutiful soldier might have claimed to not abandon his post, but in truth he cravenly wished to avoid trouble. Let Roman and the White Fang handle whoever was inside- he'd claim to be keeping an eye out for the cops (who should have been bought off) or anyone else (who should be smart enough not to run towards the sound of gunfire).

Just as obviously, that was about when a familiar girl in red turned the corner from down the street.

Ruby Rose, it seemed, was not nearly smart enough. Somehow that didn't surprise him- though he was surprised she had managed to rope anyone else in with her apparent lack of common sense, as an auburn haired girl in green followed her towards the still rising plume of smoke. An expression of concern was apparent on Ruby's face, which was echoed by a frown on Jaune's.

He hadn't wanted to get involved in whatever trouble was happening. But that didn't mean he wanted well-meaning innocents to walk right into it either- he'd have to try to stop them. Even if, especially if, they were Huntresses-in-training.

Well, it was for the best. It was even the right thing to do, kinda, something he rarely got to attempt these days. The last time he'd done that was that burglary, when he'd chosen _not_ to bring the vengeful wrath of the mob down on her head by abandoning his job in the middle of a heist. He stepped out from the shadows to greet them, pleased when they slowed to a halt. Behind the red glasses, though, the smile didn't seem to reach his eyes for the concern and touch of fear he was trying to hide.

"Evening Ruby," he called out kindly enough as the girl finally stopped. "Remember me?" he asked, raising his glasses briefly to look less intimidating. (Or, at the very least, less goonish.)

"Jaune?" Ruby asked. Wondering turned to excitement as she recognized him. "Jaune! It is you! I was worried!"

"Huh? Worried?" Jaune asked, taken aback. He hadn't been expecting that- had learned not to expect concern from anyone since he entered this dust-forsaken city. He wasn't sure how to take it, honestly.

Ruby nodded. "Yeah! I went by the Club, to see if you wanted to make that weapon at Signal with me, but no one seemed to know you! I talked to the club owner and eventually he told me you quit your job all of a sudden and he hadn't seen you since!"

Jaune let out a nervous laugh. "Right. Quit. Ahaha." Slugged and beaten and kicked out like a pathetic mutt, more like it. "It, ah, wasn't working out for me, so I took another job offer and here I am. Been real busy. Sorry for not being around," he said, and tempered his half-truths with a sincere smile.

Ruby seemed like a nice girl, really, to have gone out of her way to follow up on her offer. In those long weeks of boredom, he'd fantasized about taking her up on it a few times, even if it would never have worked out. He'd probably have been arrested the moment he stepped into Signal, let alone if he'd done so asking to see a little girl while dressed in the goon suit, the only clothes he owned. Teacher or not, her Uncle probably would have thrown a fit.

"Ruby, who is this?" the red haired girl beside her finally spoke up. She was… odd, but was polite enough.

"Oh! This is Jaune," Ruby introduced. "I met him helping people out of a club during a fight, and later again in a store. He's a good guy," Ruby asserted, and Jaune Arc had to hide a guilt-induced squirm behind his unyielding glasses.

"Is he your friend?" the ginger girl asked.

Ruby paused, unsure and uncertain, but Jaune knew the answer he wanted. Something to give him common cause with the second girl to get them all out of trouble.

"I am," he claimed, surprising Ruby momentarily before she smiled in relief that her hopes weren't one-sided. "And you, Miss?"

"Yes! I am Penny and Ruby is my First Friend!" the girl said in an odd fashion. She shook his hand with a vice grip, but an enthusiastic smile lit her face as she made the claim.

Ruby looked sheepish, but smiled as well. "We, ah, just met for the first time earlier today," she said.

"Nothing wrong with that. Before my family passed, Mom used to say that strangers were just friends you hadn't met yet," Jaune shared.

Penny really seemed to like that even as Ruby quieted in sympathy. "Truly?" she asked, hopeful.

Jaune smiled- partly sincere, but partly satisfied that his plan seemed to be working. "Sure," he said. "And we were strangers until we just met right now, so we can do the same, right?" he asked.

Penny actually danced. "What a fortuitous day!" she practically sang. "I have made a Second Friend!"

Ruby smiled, but wasn't so easily distracted and diverted. "What are you doing here, Jaune?" she asked.

"Oh, I'm a security guard now," Jaune claimed. It wasn't quite a lie, from a certain point of view- he never claimed what he was securing for who. "What are you girls doing out so late at night?"

"I am helping my friend as a friend help her sister help her friend, friend!" Penny answered cheerfully, really digging her favorite word. It was up to Ruby to actually explain things.

"My sister, she's in Beacon now and has her own team now, but her friends had a fight and one of them ran off. She asked if I had seen or heard anything around town, said she might be looking for trouble with the White Fang. I wanted to help so I started looking around on my own, ran into Penny, and…" she pointed at the still rising dust plume.

"Oh, we just had a mishap," Jaune claimed with a (nervous) laugh. "We have people handling it, don't worry."

"Is anyone hurt?" Ruby asked immediately with concern.

"Do you require assistance?" Penny offered.

"No, nothing, you two should go home now," Jaune refused, making shooing gestures. "It's probably resolved now anyway." He hadn't heard any further sounds of fighting, at least- which made his voice cracking all the more obvious.

Ruby frowned. She didn't believe him. "Jaune… is everything alright?" she asked, a note of concern in her voice.

"Alright? Fine! Everything's fine!" Jaune said, trying to hide his growing concern. "Will be as soon as you two are tucked in bed back home!" Damn it, he didn't want two nice girls getting caught up in this-

"He seems very upset and stressed," Penny analyzed. "I believe he is very worried."

Ruby's frowned, and Jaune prepared to deny, and then there was the sound of a gunshot.

"Get down!" Jaune demanded, all but jumping on Ruby on his own way to the relative safety of the ground as several more gunshots rang out in close succession.

"Jaune, there's trouble!" Ruby protested, squirming in an attempt to escape. Jaune was heavier, though, and not exactly complying.

"I know!" he exclaimed. "That's why you need to get out of here!" Because a huntress-in-training could ruin the heist. Because messing up and letting someone someone who could tip the scales through while he was on guard would shatter his reputation and fragile working relationship with the White Fang. But mostly because they _were_ the White Fang, they _weren't_ good people, and letting Ruby through could get her _hurt_.

"I am prepared to assist! I am combat ready!" Penny proudly claimed.

"Jaune! Trust me! I can fight too, I can help you!" Ruby said.

"I don't want you combat ready or your help, I want you safe!" he shouted at them.

"But what about you?" demanded Ruby. "What are you going to do if we leave you here?"

"I'll be fine alone," Jaune claimed.

"Don't be so stubborn!" Ruby said. "Let us help!"

"Friends do not abandon friends in need of assistance," Penny added helpfully.

Jaune's brain scrambled for a solution, and came up with an idea. Fight fire with fire, friendship with friendship.

"Friends don't let friends go into unnecessary danger," he invented on the spot, looking at Penny. "Help me get her somewhere safe."

Penny looked uncertain. Ruby was alarmed.

"Penny, don't!" she said. "He's not trained! He's not prepared for what he's getting into!"

But it was Jaune who held Penny's eye. "Penny, as a friend, _please_ ," he begged. "This is my responsibility," and it was, criminal culprit that he was, "not hers. Help me get Ruby somewhere safe."

"Penny, no! Get Jaune out of here first!" Ruby begged.

Penny came to her conclusion and nodded. "Very well, friend," she said, and bent down to assist him.

(Thank Oum, or the spirits, or whatever Creator she believed in that she chose to listen to him. He didn't want them hurt, and not just because the Bombshell would be certain to go on the warpath and avenge Ruby if she was.)

Jaune had expected for her to help keep Ruby under control as he frog-marched her down the street, but instead the auburn-haired girl lifted Ruby from beneath him with ease and a iron-firm grip. Ruby squirmed and kicked, trying to escape, but to no avail. She twisted and grabbed for anything that might provide leverage- Penny, the ground, Jaune himself. If she grabbed, he was certain she wouldn't let go.

Jaune stepped away, just out of her reach, never giving her the chance.

Penny stood, and gave him a nod. "I will return for you, friend," she promised, before something crazy happened. Her back split open, floating daggers with wires flying down the street whence they came. Metal blades pierced concrete as if it had the resistance of warm jello, before anchoring and pulling wires taught. No sooner than they tightened than they began to reel her backwards, sending both girls flying down the street with superhuman speed. Penny had a firm grip on Ruby- Ruby had fearful grey eyes and disappeared with a hand still stretched towards Jaune.

Jaune watched the machine-girl carry little red riding hood away, his own jaw dropped. He wondered what sort of being she was, amazed at how ignorant he was to think she needed protection by the likes of him.

"Yeah, you do that," he said to the retreating girls. He hadn't heard anymore gunshots in awhile- with any luck, it was over and he'd be long gone before they could return and get into trouble or the cops show up and get him into trouble or anything else could happen. At least everything important was over.

As was par for the course for the night, he was wrong once again. There was another gunshot- a single, final shot from Roman's cane that finished the night's climax. Jaune turned and left the empty street behind, and returned to his life of crime to check on his boss.

* * *

Author notes:

And we finally break the thousand word barrier by a thousand. Didn't feel right to break this one in half, and more will start to be similarly long going forward.

A number of you correctly deduced the implications for the first divergence point of the Burglary: Ruby isn't at Beacon. Some things don't necessarily change- Ruby and Jaune weren't responsible for the other partners forming, Blake's preoccupation with the White Fang isn't Ruby's fault, and so on. And some things don't change as much as they could, if only because my approach to AU's like this is that broad strokes should be the same when possible in order to appreciate the differences. The more things change, the more they stay the same- so as long as Ruby has the opportunity and the reason, things like meeting Penny can still be justified.

But things are changing, and this night is another one of those where things begin to to get very different indeed, even if it's not explicit yet. Points to whoever can correctly guess what the second major divergence is before it's made explicit tomorrow.


	12. Common Criminal 12

A Common Criminal or Something

* * *

Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY. It belongs to RoosterTeeth, and the memory of the master of computer animation. May your brainchild keep moving forward, Monty.

* * *

" _When a man is denied the right to live the life he believes in, he has no choice but to become an outlaw."_

-Nelson Mandela

* * *

/

He had made his way to the docks without collapsing from the adrenaline rush leaving his body. He had passed the bruised and beaten White Fang members without stopping in sympathy to see if they were all right. He hadn't stopped and stared at the fallen crate and battle damage, not even slowing as if he were used to it.

But he couldn't fake nonchalance at the body at Roman's feet. It was a faunus. It was- he had been- male. Muscular. Blonde. Ripped with abs that could bounce concrete, and with a real warrior's weapon laying nearby. It was possible he'd been handsome, but it was hard to tell with most of his face blown off.

Jaune Arc couldn't look away. Jaune, at least, kept his mouth shut and free from vomit as he stared from behind the red glasses.

Roman saw him and adopted his typical sarcasm and wit. "I see you missed our guest, Crater Face," he introduced, giving a mocking bow and contemptuous kick to the corpse. The head rolled slightly, the remains of the face staring directly at Jaune. "Luckily I didn't, though it seems our other guest has scampered off for the moment." False levity fled as he gave Jaune a measuring look. "Where were you?" he demanded.

"Keeping two huntresses off your back," Jaune answered. Suppressing his gag reflex from the sight was tightening his throat, lowering the pitch of his voice to something suitably deep. "I sent them off on a wild goose chase, but they'll be sure to return soon. We need to leave."

"A team of Huntresses? Is that what we're dealing with here?" Roman asked, taking a closer look at the body before him.

"In training, at least," Jaune said. "One of them was… mechanical somehow, like a cyborg or robot. But they were both looking for a friend from Beacon. She had gone off to investigate the White Fang."

"She?" Roman's eyes narrowed. "Well, I dare say she found us. But if Beacon's involved, that changes things. Good job, but it's time to move," he said, directing Jaune to follow him.

Jaune did, careful to step over the blonde corpse without defiling it further. Roman didn't bother, scraping something off the bottom of his shoes on the abs of the dead boy, as if the mess he'd made of the faunus's face wasn't enough. He gave it another contemptuous kick for good measure, sending the head rolling back the other way back towards Jaune, and Jaune could have sworn he saw what was left of the eyes follow him as he made his retreat into the Bullhead.

"Where are we going?" Jaune asked as the Bullhead lifted off, already feeling sick even before the motion sickness kicked in. Clearly not to the previous safe house they had been using.

"We're going to see the boss," Roman said, "and you're going to tell her everything you just told me. I'm sure she'll be pleased to know hunters are getting involved in this."

* * *

/

Author notes:

For some reason the page break is acting funky forme. I'm going to go back to using '/' to delineate between scenes. Pay it no mind.

Points to wbrendon89 and Kami no Kage and Crematix, for correctly guessing that Sun and only Sun would be the one to die. Penny may have won the fight in canon, but it was Ruby who intervened right when Roman had Sun at cane-point. Blake survives, but... well, that's for you to wonder. A Penny for your thoughts?

Once again, Jaune's success as a criminal keep Ruby from being a Hero, once again Ruby not being a hero makes things worse, and once again Jaune's best intentions lead to the worst sort of success which leaves him falling further and faster. If I had to rename this fic to something slightly less appropriate, I'd call it 'From Bad to Worse.'

Thanks to all those who've been reviewing and sharing their thoughts, and especially those who've admitted to enjoying the pacing despite skepticism of short updates. That lets me know I've done my job right in terms of pacing. That's one of the cool advantages of daily updates and the people who start reading early and stick around the entire time- by forcing a slowdown, you (the readers) can get a sense of gradual progression for Jaune's development over time. If I posted the entire story at once you might nod and agree, but it's by drawing out the gradual progression in increments over days and weeks you can really appreciate it. This is the story of a slow fall in steps over time, not a rapid-fire series of shorts to be downed in a single afternoon. Thanks for putting up with it, and I'm glad people are enjoying it.


	13. Common Criminal 13

A Common Criminal or Something

* * *

Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY. It belongs to RoosterTeeth, and the memory of the master of computer animation. May your brainchild keep moving forward, Monty.

* * *

" _When a man is denied the right to live the life he believes in, he has no choice but to become an outlaw."_

-Nelson Mandela

* * *

/

Cinder scares the piss out of him.

His life of crime had been simple before. It had made sense. When he had moved things, he simply didn't ask questions he didn't need the answers to because he knew he probably wouldn't want the answers to them. When he had been a bouncer, he had pushed people into or out of line, just keeping the rules. When he had worked for Roman as a thief, profit had been the motive. And when he had worked with the White Fang… well, they were scary and extreme, but their agenda made sense.

Cinder pulled on all those threads like a spider in her web, weaving something he couldn't understand but knew he was trapped in. The revelation that Roman's work wasn't just profit, that it and the White Fang were part of a plan- it was terrible. Terrifying. No one even suspected there was a conspiracy behind this crime wave, and even most of the perpetrators had no idea there was a who or why behind it all.

Sure, Cinder was hot. Smoking, even scorching hot. But he didn't need Roman's warning to know that he'd be burned to a crisp if he stepped out of line. If he did one thing wrong. If he dared show the least bit of doubt over this conspiracy of hers. Just by knowing of her, he already knew too much.

That she had been pleased with Roman's, his, report, didn't make him feel any better.

"So Ozpin has started moving his pawns already… I wasn't expecting that," she commented.

Jaune had no idea who Ozpin was, but Roman seemed to. "The Headmaster of Beacon himself?" he said in surprise. "What's a school principal doing getting involved with us?"

"Ozpin enjoys his little games, the same as I," Cinder said. "We have… competed more than once over the years."

"Is this going to be a problem? Am I going to have more Huntresses down my throat during my robberies?" Roman wanted to know.

"I doubt it," Cinder assessed. "From what your employee said, it seems not all the students are aware or directly involved. Ozpin is likely only using a few of them as his pieces, the ones you dealt with directly."

"We killed one of them," Jaune remembered. And how could he forget- the sight of the remains of the face, melted and blasted beyond recognition, except the parts that unfortunately were all too recognizable-

"We still have kitty-cat to consider," Roman reminded, ignoring Arc's green face. He'd explained and laughed off Jaune's queasiness as an extension of the motion sickness. It wasn't, but Jaune was happy to cling to the excuse. Cinder hadn't seemed to care, once she heard the information he had. "She could be a problem."

"Then you'll just have to be careful," Cinder returned with no pity. "Fortunately you seem to have a competent subordinate to help you with that," she said, giving the slightest of respectful nods to Jaune as she said it.

"I don't know," a new voice said. "He seems suspicious to me. How could he get a huntress to spill the beans and turn tail like that anyway? He could be a mole."

"Emerald," Cinder acknowledged politely, but let Jaune defend himself.

"I asked. Nicely," Jaune answered, unease and tension keeping his throat tight and helping keep his voice gruff. "It's not the first time I've dealt with her." Not the first time he'd kept Ruby out of the trouble he kept getting himself deeper into.

"And this robot-girl… believed you just because you said you'd be friends?" Emerald asked, skeptical.

"Clearly he has a way with words and women," another person, this one male, said as he entered the conversation. He was tall, suave, and smooth… and threw an arm affably over Jaune's shoulder in masculine solidarity. "I like him already."

"All the more reason for me not to, Mercury," Emerald concluded.

"Enough," Cinder ruled. "Save your bickering for later. If Ozpin is moving, we need to keep on schedule. We're lucky enough as it is that we weren't set back tonight."

"I'll finish the last of the robberies then," Roman concluded. "Jaune, follow me and-"

"No."

Roman paused, turning carefully to look at Cinder. "No?" he asked, voice even and betraying nothing.

"No," Cinder said. "Your subordinate will help mine tie up some loose ends. At the same time, Emerald will look into just how reliable he really is." She gave Jaune an ambiguously encouraging smile. "Think of it as… a job evaluation," she suggested, not reassuring in the least. "If you pass, great things are in your future."

And if he didn't, he'd be dead. Great. And terrible. Same thing these days, really. He could already see himself burning alive in her gaze.

"Hear that?" Mercury asked, giving an amiable squeeze with the arm still on the shoulder. "We'll have fun- solve a few problems here, maybe pick up a few chicks there, easy!"

"Yeah. Easy," Jaune echoed, his spirit and confidence lagging but following behind Mercury's good cheer. Problem solving sounded harmless enough- at most just another job for another common criminal. No one needed to get hurt if you just focused on solving the problem the right way, right? As long as the problem was solved, they wouldn't care how. This could be his chance- to do something better and have a choice in things again.

Besides, Mercury seemed like a likable enough guy. Even if Emerald didn't seem to like him, it'd be nice to at least try to make a friend of sorts. What was the saying? Something about honor amongst thieves?

* * *

/

* * *

Author notes:

I can never quite decide- is Jaune moving up in the world of crime, or down? Is he becoming a better criminal, or worse? If Jaune wins, does that mean the bad guys have won?

Still more funky issues with the page break dividers. Le sigh.


	14. Common Criminal 14

A Common Criminal or Something

* * *

Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY. It belongs to RoosterTeeth, and the memory of the master of computer animation. May your brainchild keep moving forward, Monty.

* * *

" _When a man is denied the right to live the life he believes in, he has no choice but to become an outlaw."_

-Nelson Mandela

* * *

/

They _were_ thieves, and completely unapologetic about it. Pickpockets, robbers, the casual sleight of hand that saw fresh fruit vanish from the vendor's cart and end up in their hands later. They bickered, they laughed, they jeered at their duped targets as they moved on. Everything he should have hated and opposed. He should have refused the fruit freely stolen and freely offered to him. He didn't. It wasn't like refusing would have returned it to the vendor's cart.

Instead he took the pomegranate they offered and bit in, and couldn't bring himself to mind how sweet it tasted. It was food in the stomach. It wasn't really hurting anyone- it was just a pomegranate. Just as he wasn't really being hurt when he slipped into their banter- Emerald's scathing words were just words, Mercury's subtle mockery just mockery. So they made fun of him and his goon suit- so what?

He wasn't here because he was worth respecting- he was here because he was useful.

Case in point, (still) serving as Roman's representative. Jaune seemed to be becoming Roman's go-to stand-in for dealing with the people Roman didn't care for, which seemed to be most people. The Faunus of the White Fang, the hired goons that even Jaune had to admit were slower than him… and Cinder's own representatives. Considering how much work Roman gave him so that he wouldn't have to, Jaune was a veritable lieutenant at this point. Which brought him back to here, and their current problem to be fixed.

"Is this really the place?" Emerald asked, skeptical.

"Tukson's Book Trade?" Jaune looked at the store from their lookout position. "Your guy Tukson lives here. I'm pretty sure he sells books." He said it with a perfectly straight face, it wasn't clear if he was trying to be helpful or just stating the obvious.

"No shit," Emerald said. Oum this guy was an idiot…

But Mercury was grinning. "I'm so proud of you for coming so far," he said with exaggerated pride, throwing an arm over Jaune's shoulder. "I give it a seven."

Emerald was wary. "A seven on what scale?" she wanted to know.

"Of mocking you. Since your reading skills are so impressive," he explained, grin only widening as Emerald colored in angry embarrassment. Alright, maybe Jaune had been a bit passive-aggressive with that one…

"I meant, is it really him?" Emerald clarified. "Who disappears only to start a shop under their own name?"

"Someone who thinks no one would be dumb enough to look for them on a scroll search," Mercury suggested.

"Which he was," Emerald reminded, pointing at Jaune. Everyone had laughed at Jaune when he had simply done a public search on his scroll for the missing White Fang member's name- even Cinder had let out barely covered chuckle- until it provided everything from a name to photo to current street address.

Roman had laughed in disbelief and called him their ace investigator. Cinder had been more subtly pleased, and made an approving remark about resourcefulness and not overlooking the obvious. But Emerald had the right of it- it was something that was so stupid it had worked. Who knows how much longer it might have taken had they done searched for him the usual way.

"What's the plan?" Jaune asked, honestly not knowing what was happening next. All he'd known is that Tukson had disappeared- no one knew why, or under what circumstances. He'd wondered if Tukson had been compromised by the fuzz, but trying to lay low wouldn't explain opening a book store…

"Oh, we were thinking of having a polite conversation, ask him what he's been up to," Mercury said with an easy air.

Jaune stared at him blankly. "…really?" he eventually asked, not quite able to believe it. Junior's thugs would have just barged in and started waving weapons around.

Emerald and Mercury exchanged glances, and a subtle smile. "Oh, totally. You never know what people will tell you if you say 'please' and 'thank you,'" Emerald said with a far nicer tone than usual.

Jaune accepted it- Roman had hired him because he wasn't just brawn. Why should he be surprised if Cinder's enforcers were the same? It was good to see people who were willing to try talking things out first, even if they were criminals. It gave him… something close to hope anyway.

"And where do you want me during this conversation?" he asked instead.

"You can watch the back door in the alley for us," Mercury offered. "In case things go bad."

He clearly didn't think they would.

* * *

/

* * *

Author notes:

I don't think that's too much blatant dramatic irony, do you? Nice and subtle.

Next chapter- the closest this story has to a dramatic fight scene. It should be obvious enough that it doesn't even need to be called a spoiler. Who's rooting for team JEM?

On a more serious note- you know what is subtle? Dat symbolism. Points to anyone who catches why a fruit isn't just a piece of fruit. Feel free to brag about how, like, cultured and stuff you are if you get it. Your reward is some subtle symbolic foreshadowing.


	15. Common Criminal 15

A Common Criminal or Something

* * *

Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY. It belongs to RoosterTeeth, and the memory of the master of computer animation. May your brainchild keep moving forward, Monty.

* * *

" _When a man is denied the right to live the life he believes in, he has no choice but to become an outlaw."_

-Nelson Mandela

* * *

/

Things went very bad, of course. From bad to worst.

Jaune was in the alleyway out back when he heard the first shots fired and the dull thud of bodies. It wasn't until he heard the muffled yells from Emerald and Mercury that he entered himself. He had to use his goon blade to cut the lock before he was able to force the door open with a shoulder shove. Was it police? Hunters? (Either one should have sent him running the other way but he'd promised he'd help if there was a commotion, and an Arc never goes back on his word.)

"Damn it!" he heard Emerald curse, even as the sound of falling books echoed his way. "We've got a runner!"

"Jaune! Stop him!" Mercury hollered, no doubt hoping that Jaune would hear all the way out in the alley.

Jaune heard Tukson approach before he saw him- felt the thudding impacts of the large steps drawing close, saw the walls tremble as a great mass careened around them. When he finally turned the corner, Jaune could barely recognize him- he was great, he was big, he was hairy, but most of all he was bloody and bruised. He looked more beast than man, more savage than a mere seller of books. And he was clearly mad with pain.

"Hey, wait-" Jaune began, empathy ruling his mind. Had talks turned sour? Had something happened? The man was hurt, somewhere in his pocket he had something he could use as a bandage-

Tukson paid him no mind he barged his way through Jaune, not slowing at all. A full body check sent Jaune flying back into the doorway, forcing the door closed as well. The wind went out of his chest, and thoughts of first aid fled his head.

"Stop!" he tried to plead, but Tukson drove into him again, no doubt trying to power through him and the door at the same time. The door cracked but stayed quiet- something in Jaune cracked and he screamed.

Tukson snarled, more at the obstacle than at him. He tried to force through again, and then again, but the door was too sturdy and Jaune's impotent shoves as inconvenient as the yells of pain. A massive hand reached down to grab him, claws ripping through his suit as they sought something to grab. Nails pierced his skin as Tukson sought to grab him, and Jaune foresaw an image of the hand ripping through flesh to grab his ribs directly.

 _'He's going to kill me,_ ' Jaune Arc thought as nails punctured beneath his broken ribs. _'I'm going to die for a crime I don't even understand. I don't want to die!'_ His hands scrabbled for something, anything to use. The door, Tukson's muscles, nothing came to hand. Nothing but the hilt of his laughably pathetic weapon, which Jaune picked up.

' _I don't want to die!'_

He didn't know much about using a weapon, except that the sharp end is for sticking and the long side is for hacking, and the first cut made Tukson recoil in pain. Tukson tried to fight back, tried to retaliate, but doing so just gave Jaune another chance to swing his cleaver. The more he hacked the more space he had, and the more space he had the better and bloodier he could hack, and so he hacked, and hacked, and hacked and hacked and hacked in a fearful frenzy until Tukson's roars became cries became little whimpers until the big man fell onto him and against the door. That's how they found him- stuck under the still bleeding body of Tukson, pinned to the broken door by the dying man's weight. Suffocating and smothered by the blood.

They themselves were dusty, but didn't seem shaken or bruised at all as they shoved the soon-to-be corpse (the man he'd killed a man he'd killed a man he'd killed he'd killed he hadn't meant to kill an be a killer) off of him.

"He did a number on you, didn't he?" Mercury asked, or Jaune thought he asked as the world swam in and out of focus. (he'd killed he'd killed there was so much blood oh dust why was there so much blood?)

"You should see the other guy," Emerald remarked, examining Tukson. His body was destroyed- that was the best summation. Bones were broken from enhanced kicks. Bullet marks puckered his back, dampened by aura. But the front- the bloody cleaver was cheap and crude, but it could cut bone as easily as flesh.

Mercury whistled, impressed by the bloodiness of it all. "That's some serious work right there," he complimented. "You done this sort of thing before?"

Jaune didn't answer. Jaune Arc couldn't answer. He was trying too hard to breath. Broken ribs and suppressed bile and a hundred emotions clawing at his throat, suffocating him.

"I doubt it," Emerald supplied. "Look at him- I'm not seeing any aura from him at all. Nothing's protecting him, or helping him recover."

Mercury was dumbstruck, and then began to laugh. "First kill, and doesn't even have his power unlocked? What a way to pop that cherry," he said. He knelt down beside Jaune. "Well kid, today's your lucky day. Why don't we give you something to remember it by?"

Emerald raised an eyebrow. "You're going to unlock his aura?"

Mercury shrugged. "Why not? I think he passed the test- no way he's some well-intentioned mole after that. We can't just leave him here either, and killing him would just cause more problems. It'll make him easier to get out of here at the least." He adopted a faked contemplative expression. "Now, how did it go, 'For it is in passing that we approach immortality. Through this we become paragons of cool, just like Mercury Black…'"

Emerald sighed as she sat, pushing Mercury away and sliding Jaune's head onto her lap to better hold his face for the ritual. Jaune had never more wanted to puke on an attractive woman.

"Idiot. I'll do it. You probably don't know the real words anyway."

Mercury grinned, and turned back to Jaune. "Congrats, kid. You'll get a kick of the power. Who knows- maybe one day you'll even thank us for bringing you along today."

Jaune didn't respond. Physically and mentally couldn't. Neither did Emerald as she began the ritual.

"For it is in passing that we achieve immortality… oh, would you shut that thing up?" Emerald snapped, tiring of the pained groans emanating from Tukson's dying form.

Mercury stood up to oblige. Mercury, the friendly man with the easy smile, raised his foot with a sneer, and crushed Tukson's head beneath his boot in order to finish him off.

"Runaways get what they deserve," Mercury sneered, spitting on the corpse with contempt.

* * *

/

* * *

Author notes:

Behold- my execution of a dramatic fight scene. Not much fighting, but significant _dramata_. It's like drama, but italicized and pretentious. Sort of like cultural allusions. Let's be honest here- how many people would have caught the pomegranate allusion if I hadn't explicitly said it was an allusion? Kinda regret doing that.

Buthey! Everyone who wanted Jaune to get his aura so he could be a badass! Lucky you, and lucky Jaune! Wasn't he lucky to be here this fortunate day?


	16. Common Criminal Finale

A Common Criminal or Something

* * *

Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY. It belongs to RoosterTeeth, and the memory of the master of computer animation. May your brainchild keep moving forward, Monty.

* * *

" _When a man is denied the right to live the life he believes in, he has no choice but to become an outlaw."_

-Nelson Mandela

* * *

/

"Jaune!"

(He's not sure if this is real or all just a dream. He wants it to be. He wants to wake up at home, safe and sound and surrounded by the love of friends and warmth of family he no longer has.)

"Jaune, wake up!"

(The voice is annoying. Why can't she let him sleep? Why can't she let him get away from this nightmare?)

"Jaune!" There's the sound of a slap.

(There's a flash of pain, but he hardly notices. It's nothing compared to the pain in his heart. If it's not a dream- if he's not home because he has no home- then he can't escape now he's really a- really a mur-)

"Jaune! You're waking up! Thank goodness!"

He comes to with the feeling of raindrops on his cheek. It's raining. It's raining? Strange- it was such a beautiful sunny day earlier…

"Jaune, can you hear me? Are you alright?"

His vision clears, or at least his mind can understand it. In front of the cracked and shattered moon there's face looking down at his, eyes damp, expression filled with worry and fear and unreserved concern-

(-that he doesn't deserve because he has crossed the line, he may still be a common criminal but that's only because life is cheap and he is a-)

"Ru…by?" he croaks, mind at last able to recognize her. Ruby Rose. Student at Signal. Huntress in training. Aspiring Hero. Defender of the weak and wretched. Agent of justice.

She must hate him, he thinks, even as she throws her arms around him and gives him the first hug he's had since he left his empty home and came to the shadows of this wretched city. He can't even comprehend why.

"Jaune! I was so worried!" Ruby Rose cries. Such a sweet girl to cry over hurt strangers, to worry at all about someone she barely knew. Good girls like her shouldn't be sad over (bad) people like him.

"It's alright," he manages in an attempt to reassure her, feebly patting her shoulder. "I'm alright." It's a lie, mostly. Physically, he might make it. Aura is the only reason he can talk, but even it has its limits. He needs some sort of treatment, soon, if he's to live. But mentally, emotionally, morally-

"You are not alright!" Ruby yells on his shoulder and into his ear. "You're hurt! You're bleeding! You had me worried!"

He feels a bit of remorse at the last one.

"Why?" he croaks. He'd gotten what he deserved. He was in too deep, over his head, out of his league, whatever. He couldn't pretend to be a decent person anymore- not when-

( _I don't want to die!_ as a bloody hand thrust an ever bloodier blade again and again and-)

Ruby gives a laugh, a laugh of nerves and disbelief and relief and everything in between.

"Because you were gone! You were gone and I didn't have a clue how to find you just like every other time you disappear! My sister's teammate vanished and Penny couldn't find you when she went back to the docks and all the police would tell me afterwards was that a blonde guy was killed! I was worried sick and no one at the Club had seen you and then when I was shopping for books for Signal I heard a commotion and I find you bleeding in an alley!" It's one long run-on sentence of babbled relief and frustration and the last few tears of fear for good measure.

"Jaune, you look like someone tried to kill you!" she finished, almost exasperated at having to explain why she should have been concerned.

( _'Runaways get what they deserve,_ ' _the friendly man had spat, blood and brain on his boot, a boot that would be on his head if he ever dared to betray or try to leave-)_

But that doesn't explain why she'd care now that he- Ah. Back up a bit. Her worry. She must sill be thinking the docks then. That makes more sense- that was before he crossed the line between tolerable and vile common criminals. Before he- back when he only kept the company of murderers.

"He's dead," he said, thinking to the blonde boy from the docks. His dreams didn't let him forget it, didn't forget the blonde boy with the cratered face whose head kept turning to watch him, eye sockets accusing Jaune from beyond the grave. Why hadn't he stopped him and kept him from getting hurt? If he was trying to play guard, why had he let someone slip by?

It wasn't him who had been hurt back then, though. If Ruby understood she'd calm down and leave before there could any trouble and everything would be alright. What was important was he'd only gotten what was coming so Ruby didn't need to worry about him, now or ever again, for her own good.

"My fault. Everything my fault," he tries to explain, tries to make her believe so that she'll be disgusted as she should and turn her back like she inevitably would and leave him, just like all the other good people in his life who were better than him had. You're not a criminal because your family left you and you had nowhere to run back home to, Jaune Arc, your family left you because being a criminal is what you are and always would become. Somehow they knew you'd disgrace the family name, and so saved themselves the trouble of dying in shame-

"That's not true," Ruby rejected, interrupting his thoughts. "You were just trying to survive. I bet they attacked first, right?" she asked, assuming the best of him.

Maybe they had. He doubted Roman had shot the blonde-haired boy unprovoked. He hadn't struck the first blow against Tukson. Didn't know who had. It kind of was self-defense, but it also wasn't. Not when the only reasons they had been there to be attacked was because they were committing a crime. Not when they were the criminals at fault.

 _('Runaways get what they deserve,' the man he'd almost considered a friend had spat, crushing the skull of a better man who had tried to leave the life behind.)_

"I didn't want this," Jaune confessed weakly, staring out of the alley and at the shattered moon above. "I just-"

"Jaune?" Ruby strained to listen.

"I just wanted to become a Hunter," he admitted. "It was supposed to be one little white lie to get me there. I didn't mean-" he gasped, a mix of pain and suppressed sob. "I didn't mean for it to become like this."

Didn't mean to go down this road. Didn't mean to be so scared of the mob's views on squealers and so afraid of Schnee 'examples' in jail and so outnumbered by terrorists and so over his head and so weak that he was too afraid to even try to leave it all. It wasn't supposed to have turned out like this.

"It doesn't have to end here, Jaune," Ruby said, gripping his hand tighter. "Stay with me. We can make things better. Uncle Qrow can help you with whatever trouble you're having, and we can make you a good weapon at Signal and you can be better. You can still become a hero. Just don't give up." She was squeezing his hand, trying to reassure, trying to not let him let go.

"I'd have liked that," Jaune breathed. "That sounds nice." All of it did- school, a heroic life, but more importantly one of virtue, and a weapon with her.

Impossible, at this point. But nice.

"It still can be," Ruby had faith. "But to do that you have to stay with me. Don't quit. Don't give up. Stay here, alright?" She was looking at his injuries, looking for some way to get help, torn between staying and going to get help. Simple girl probably didn't have her scroll with her to call for help directly, today of all days no less.

He let out a painful laugh. "I don't think I'm going anywhere." Couldn't. Wouldn't. After so many bad choices- after so many failures of taking his life into his own hands- he'd let things happen as they would, just this once. He'd choose to follow whatever path Fate or the Creator had in mind. Even if- even if it was to drag him back into the light and bring him to justice.

Ruby smiled in relief. "You say that, but you never stick around," she tried to joke. "Can't keep a job down, can you?" she tried to tease through the remains of tears of concern and empathy and desperate hope.

He thought of his jobs since he came to Vale. The things he'd been, the things he'd done as a common criminal. He'd been a smuggler. A thug. A robber. A facilitator of terrorism.

And now a murderer.

"Not really," he breathed sadly. Wonder how long that one would last before he screw up once again and become something worse. He couldn't think of a worse sort of common criminal than a murderer.

Ruby frowned even as she stood. "I'm going to get help. Stay here, alright Jaune? I mean it- I don't want to find you gone again when I get back," she scolded, hands on the waist of her combat skirt and as stern a face as she could muster.

"Promise me, okay?" she asked.

He mumbled a response.

"I'm sorry?" Ruby asked, not catching it over a fateful breeze.

He'd tried to ask her not to leave. He wanted her to stay- to share a bit of that faith in him, or just to not leave him alone. He was afraid of dying alone, after watching his parents and sisters fall to the corruption one by one until he was all that left to bury them all. He didn't want to be alone- he'd left home for the city the day after he'd buried his last sister, he didn't want to be alone so bad. If Ruby just stayed- just held his hand as his eyes grew even heavier-

( _Then the hands on the waist of her combat skirt would be stained with the blood that's on his. He blanches at the thought._ )

"On my family name," he chose to say instead. "An Arc never goes back on their word."

( _"It'll be alright, Jaune," Jeanne Arc had said after he'd sworn he'd get into Beacon and meet a nice girl and carry on the family legacy with pride, but most of all after he promised her that no matter what he would keep moving forward. He'd have promised her all the shards of the moon if that's what she wanted, anything to give his last sister a bit more hope.  
_

 _"When you wake up you'll still be you inside and we'll still be watching after you with pride because you always make the right choice even if you do everything else wrong first. It will be alright and you won't be alone in the end. Promise."_

 _She'd said it with weak coughs and a weaker squeeze of the hand but with such a strong conviction that he'd believed enough to finally fall asleep at her bedside. After all, she'd promised he'd wake up and it'd be alright he wouldn't be alone. She'd **promised.** )_

Arcs never willingly went back on their word. They died first. Not like he had a choice in either matter regardless. All he could do was choose to accept his fate, whatever the world wanted of him.

"I'll stay here," Jaune Arc promised the Reaper above him.

Ruby smiled, trusting him. "I'll be there when you wake up and it'll be alright, Jaune Arc," she promised. "Just don't give up. Wait for me."

One moment she was there.

The next, she's not.

He doesn't know if she ever was. He wonders if it was all a hallucination. Probably- he could swear he smells the faint scent of flowers scattered in the wind, and hears the sound of gold.

(Not coin clinking- not the metal- _gold_. It makes no sense now, but one day it will.)

Jaune Arc struggles to stay awake, waiting until the scent fades and the music stops, still not knowing but just faintly hoping his life is (and is not) over.

He can only wait so long, however, before the darkness returns to take him away and drag him back down once again, with no intent of ever letting him go again. With no one to hold his hand and guide him through- with no friends or family at his side to help him fight it off- he has no chance.

Jaune Arc stops sliding into darkness, and _falls_.

* * *

/

theres a day when all hearts will be broken  
when a shadow will cast out the light  
and our eyes cry a million tears  
help wont arrive

theres a day when all courage collapses  
and our friends turn and leave us behind  
creatures of darkness will triumph  
the sun won't rise

when we've lost all hope  
and succumb to fear  
as the skies rain blood  
and the end draws near

/

* * *

 _/_

 _End Common Criminal_

 _/_

* * *

Author notes:

Congratulations! If you're feeling the tiniest of tears or the smallest bit of sadness, then you have a heart. Or thought for a second that this was the end of the fic.

This is not the end of 'A Common Criminal Or Something.' This is the end of _Common Criminal_ , the first major arc of the story and roughly the first half. Tomorrow begins _Underworld_ , the second main arc. _Underworld_ will have it's own distinct feel and style, as you'll see soon enough. Fewer, but bigger, chapters.

But that's tomorrow- today is to talk about _Common Criminal_ , and your thoughts up to this point. Did I make you tear up just a bit? What are you feeling, and why? Hopes? Fears? Speculation? This is a great point to round up your thoughts of the story to date, and I'd love to hear them.

And, just to beg the question to get you all thinking ahead of time... what's your bet on Jaune's path and final outcome? There's enough contradictory foreshadowing tropes so far that any guess is as justifiable as another. Try keeping track of your guess now, and compare it to what occurs later- right or wrong, it'll be fun to see how close you all can guess. I bet most of you will be more wrong than you'd expect.


	17. Underworld 1

**Underworld**

* * *

Disclaimer: I still don't own RWBY.

* * *

 _/_

 _"Thy soul is by vile fear assailed, which oft so overcasts a man, that he recoils from noblest resolution, like a beast at some false semblance in the twilight gloom."_  
― Dante Alighieri, _Inferno_

 _/_

* * *

When he wakes with his newfound aura, Jaune is a different man. Everyone notices it soon enough- the confidence, the ambition, the potential. The changes are as rapid as his recovery to full health, and both are remarkable and remarked upon. It's enough to recalibrate expectations, even for Emerald and Mercury who found him half-dead and and delirious, trying to fight off their help when they'd finally returned with the vehicle they'd stolen to carry him away.

Gone is the timid Arc who hid behind glasses to seem tougher than he was. It's just Jaune now, and even if he's defined by them he doesn't need tinted shades and a suit to seem implacable or intimidating- he can do the same without them. White Fang members he once joked or traded kind words with now watch him warily when his gaze looks through them. Whispers of his bloody take down of Tukson have circulated. Now when he idly fingers his cleaver when looking at them, no one thinks he's taking comfort in having a weapon to defend himself with- now they wonder if he's thinking of how to cut them up if they even think about quitting.

[Jaune has his own reason not to leave. He remembers it every time he sees Mercury's boot coming towards his face, in practice or in his dreams.]

The new Jaune, the one who's not just the weakling Arc who smiled nervously to terrorists and humanized the most vengeful of villains, inspires just a little bit of fear amongst the White Fang. Cinder and Roman and everyone else who matters aren't affected, and are more than fine with it- the rest are less likely to flee like Tukson. Being feared bothers Jaune less than it once would have. One day, just as a joke, he walks through the White Fang fingering his cleaver while whistling a song of butchers and the cutting of meat. The White Fang parts for him like a jaw too frightened to close, and Mercury and Emerald laugh when he shares the story.

[The ghostly image of Bloody Tukson, always above him whenever he fingers his cleaver, doesn't so much as smile. Can't, considering he's practically headless.]

But more impressive is the end to his passivity. Jaune Arc worked diligently, but rarely applied himself to crime or volunteered for new jobs or worked on improving himself in any meaningful way. With his newfound power, Jaune changes that- unlocking his aura is just the start. He asks for training, seeks it out, begins to watch and devour knowledge like a vulture on carrion. He pays attention when Roman demonstrates the best way to pick locks and escape tras. He asks Mercury to teach him how to fight, to really fight, and makes wagers on this or that to keep the other man entertained and willing to humor him despite how bad he is. He practices pick-pocketing with Emerald, first to her amusement at his failures and then to her delight as he swindles better and better marks, including the very winnings he's lost to Mercury for training. He's improving himself as best he can by whatever means he can.

People who have power are the ones who can have a choice. He wants that more than anything, and Jaune is the sort who will take power no matter the form. A weapon is power. Aura is power. Knowledge is power. Fear is power. It's about time he started applying himself to gathering more of it.

(For the first time since meeting him, Cinder considers Jaune with the caution of a seasoned conspirator. When things seem to good- when competence paired with no outside family ties paired with an open desire for more that was well within her ability to provide, when all these desirable things were found together in one person- it usually is too good to be true.

"How much does he know about the plan?" she asks Roman one day after the blonde leaves to fix a problem. There's no concern that he'll fail and be caught- her caution is from something else.

"Not that much," Roman claims, unconcerned. "I've been careful- he hasn't had a chance to see much that would incriminate us. He doesn't have anyone to go off and incriminate us _to_ ," Roman says easily.

"I'm not concerned about what he sees," Cinder says. "I'm concerned about what he hears. That boy _listens_.")

Having passed Cinder's crucible of a reliability test, he's more than a tool now, more than a flunky to be summoned at will and dismissed as inconsequential- he's an _asset._ He's _valuable_. And he's going to become much more valuable over time.

Everyone knows it. Everyone can tell that he's getting better- can hear when successful minor jobs are attributed to him and not his backup, can see when Mercury's training allows him to subdue a disorderly White Fang minion with extreme (but not racial) prejudice, can feel his aura manifest in greater and greater ways. Even Emerald's impressed at the amount of it, even if she's sure to remind him just how much of an uncut diamond in the rough he remains. There are bets on just how and when his semblance will manifest.

The maneuvering for his future has already begun. It would be arrogant to say that there is competition over him, but he is becoming a factor of consideration for all the relevant players, something they'd rather have on their side than against. A pawn that will someday be promoted to something worse.

* * *

/

Author Notes:

Welcome to _Underworld_ , part two of 'A Common Criminal or Something.' _Common Criminal_ was the tale of Jaune slowly falling into the criminal underworld. In _Underworld_ , Jaune's fallen in- into a lot of things, literal and figurative and metaphorical, and we'll see how it ends. As you might have noticed from the quote change, there's a different thematic emphasis going forward.

You're probably a bit confused right now- why the sudden change of Jane's personality? What happened considering the the ending of last chapter? What happened to the idea of gradual development?

It's still there. There are reasons for this. Some of them have already been foreshadowed- subtle things that no one's caught or commented on yet. Some are going to be developed going forward, or be more obvious in retrospect. And some of them... just wait for it. When you see it, you'll re-read the entire story from the start, just to check.

Also- **story revision note** : updated chapter 16 (Common Criminal Finale) with an edit of the 'closing credits' song that I can't believe I forgot. It doesn't change the plot, but a certain song fragment was too good to not put back in. 'I May Fall,' or at least parts of it, really set the tone for the transition to _Underworld_.


	18. Underworld 2

**Underworld**

* * *

Disclaimer: I still don't own RWBY.

* * *

 _/_

 _"Thy soul is by vile fear assailed, which oft so overcasts a man, that he recoils from noblest resolution, like a beast at some false semblance in the twilight gloom."_  
― Dante Alighieri, _Inferno_

 _/_

* * *

One day the White Fang lieutenant corners him in a dank cave of a hide-out. Jaune stares back, unafraid- he's seen worse [in his dreams they have their wounds even as they approach] and killed better [blood on his hands that doesn't wash off], and doesn't submit or look away nervously like he once would have.

"Hey," the giant gruffly begins. "Jaune Arc."

"Just Jaune," Jaune corrects coolly from behind his shades. He owns that calm now- if they took off his red glasses they would see boredom and apathy, not nerves alight. The Jaune Arc they barely knew isn't here anymore. It's just Jaune, no Arc, no spark behind once-hopeful blue eyes. Hence the name.

[Because an Arc never goes back on their word, they die first, and he did, dream promise or not, his choice or not, he lied to her and he didn't stay and went back on his word when he woke in this underworld and so he must not be an Arc by definition.]

"Just Jaune, then" the Lieutenant agreed. "You've been civil enough with us faunus so far. What's your view on the Schnees?"

Jaune considers. Schnee jobs are some of the most lucrative, but Schnee security is among the best corporate security around. His experience on jobs involving their dust-

[Dockyard containers don't hide the smoke and stench as Crater Face stares at him, the eyes still seeming to follow him even from beyond the grave. Don't stop those eyes from continuing to follow him, through all the secret passages and underground rooms that make up the criminal underworld he lives in, where Jaune will turn a corner and see a faceless blond ghost idly tossing stolen pomegranates as his eyes still turn to follow and watch Jaune in the privacy of the underworld's best safe houses.]

-is typically bad.

He also remembers the specter of prison- of the tales of 'examples' made by the Schnees that would make the toes of any common criminal curl. The morally grey zone of vigilante justice and amoral private security in a notoriously corrupt and unfair 'justice' system. Tales that had kept Jaune Arc awake at night until he had moved on to better jobs [and worse nightmares].

"Bunch of assholes," Jaune says.

He'd seen a picture of the Heiress once, taken when she and the Blond Bombshell and an Invincible Amazon were tearing apart another one of their White Fang safe houses. Roman would _kill_ to find the little bird who kept telling them where to go- same with the Black Cat that was doing her own one-woman wet work against them. But as far as Jaune and the Schnee were concerned… she was cute and all, but not cute enough to make up for killer robots and tight police connections that border on the corrupt, and that's not even touching on some of their actually illegal business practices. Amoral megacorps don't just play dirty with their oppressed workers- they're downright nasty when dealing with their criminal problems.

The Lieutenant laughs, pleased with his answer.

"You're not so bad, for a human," he says. "We like you. Keep it up, and someone important may want to talk with you one day."

Jaune's not sure if it's a promise or a threat, and fingers his bloody cleaver in thought as the faunus walks away. With friends like the White Fang... well, they already shared enemies. Beggars can't be choosers, and thieves don't always have the luxury of choice either. He'll consider it.

[His glasses give none of his thoughts away to anyone. No one would guess how hard he's ignoring the butcher marks on Bloody Tuscon above him.]

* * *

/

Author Notes:

Want to know what the hardest part of keeping a plot ambiguous and non-predictable is when you're posting a story where the you're throwing contradictory hints and twists to keep people guessing the ending? When you're just waiting for people to catch the 'right' foreshadowing devices you've hidden in plain sight, without drawing attention to them directly? (I'm still embarrassed about the pomegranate thing, honestly.)

It's not calling out and recognizing the reviewers who _get it_ because they've caught the hint to support their guess. Can't even identify them because drawing attention to them because saying they're right would be a spoiler in its own right.

Luckily, no one's gotten it completely right- I'll read reviews and think 'golly, -xyz- figured it out... ooh, and there they go off, they didn't catch it.' But there are some pretty good guesses out there. I'm impressed. (Even if you get enough random guesses at least some of them will accidentally be close to the truth. But I prefer to believe it's skill.)


	19. Underworld 3

**Underworld**

* * *

Disclaimer: I still don't own RWBY.

* * *

 _/_

 _"Thy soul is by vile fear assailed, which oft so overcasts a man, that he recoils from noblest resolution, like a beast at some false semblance in the twilight gloom."_  
― Dante Alighieri, _Inferno_

 _/_

* * *

Jaune and Emerald and Mercury are practically a trio at this point- Team JEM takes jobs and fixes problems the White Fang and Roman's goons aren't trusted or competent enough to handle, all while bantering and bickering like old friends that secretly love-hate [-fear] each other. He represents Roman's merry band of burglars, and they represent Cinder's conspiracy. He gets training and tips on how to be better, and they don't have to deal with Roman, and Roman doesn't have to deal with them. It's quid-pro-quo for everyone, with better banter to boot.

He's not naïve enough anymore to think that the easy camaraderie with Mercury and Emerald is friendship or ever will be. No matter what they try to make him think. Mercury is actually the more subtle about it- taking him out drinking, demonstrating outrageous flirting and pickup lines and encouraging Jaune to try the same. It's clever, but not enough by half- Mercury has always been easy-going enough to laugh with him as much as at him, and that smile never left his face even when his boot crushed Tukson's skull. But Emerald… Emerald's change of tone from scornful to almost amiable is the obvious clue. It's not that the sheer amount of aura impressed her and left her breathless when she unlocked it, though it did. Someone's told them to cultivate ties with him, to win him over with smiles and laughs and little bits of power from training the ticks and tips.

That someone is obvious, even before she crosses paths with him one day. It's right as he's about to cross the smallest of streams, their little river in the run-down basement they call base right now, and as soon as he sees her all other thoughts are out of his mind (not because she is attractive but because she is _dangerous_ ).

"Jaune, what a coincidence," Cinder lies [he knows she lies because she doesn't know he was already watching her from behind the glasses, waiting for her to make her move, even as she was waiting for him]. "I have plans that could use you, if you're up to it," Cinder offers, a subtle challenge to his ego to press him to agree already.

"What do you want?" he asks instead, less rude than simply to the point. Jaune's more direct now. Less hesitant, less inclined to beat around the bush. An experienced thug, at least, no longer unsure of his place in this criminal underworld.

She laughs- it's a sultry and seductive laugh that doesn't stir him in the least. She could strip in front of him and his eyes wouldn't leave hers he's so on guard. "Oh, I want _many_ things," she says in a suggestive tone, "but the real question is- how much would you like to go to Beacon next semester?"

He visibly pauses. Going to Beacon? Into the lair of Ozpin, their apparent nemesis?

Jaune Arc wouldn't have cared about the danger. Jaune Arc would have done almost anything to get into Beacon and fulfill that promise and become a Hero like he'd dreamed. But he's not Jaune Arc anymore- he's just Jaune, and Jaune cares about himself enough to not recklessly charge in.

"I didn't even get into Signal," he says instead. "I doubt I could fake it in Beacon. I just recently had my aura unlocked, after all," he reminds. They don't even know what his semblance is- he has a suspicion, whenever he fingers his cleaver while in thought, but no proof and no way to prove it. Besides, some secrets are best kept hidden from friend and foe alike, and he has no friends.

"Oh, we can continue training your skills. That won't be a problem," Cinder claims, confirming that she had been the reason why Mercury and Emerald were so willing to put up with his requests for lessons. "We can even get you a suitable weapon when the time comes. The real issue is if you'd be willing."

Would he be willing to be trained, to have the power of a Hunter to do with as he pleased? To have power of his own, power to stand up to anyone, for the first time in his life?

He thinks of the Blonde Bombshell, who single-handedly destroyed the Club and everyone in it solo. Thinks of Black Cat, the girl from the docks who had been ambushing entire White Fang operations on her own and winning. Just imagine what _he_ could do with such power. Would he be willing?

"Roman is my employer. Have you ran this by him yet?" he asked, trying to avoid sounding too eager. Roman was his employer, and even if he wasn't a friend he had been a patron of sorts. He'd be starving in the streets begging, or suffering in a Schnee jail for dust thieves wishing he was dead, if Roman hadn't been the only one who'd given him a chance to-

[ _We could go to Signal and make you a weapon together. I'm sure they wouldn't mind._ ]

-if Roman hadn't been the one to keep him off the streets. He owed the man that much, at least.

"Roman will be… indisposed during the next phase of the plan, a fact which he is well aware," Cinder said. "He will not be in a position to employ you at all."

He'd tell Roman that, make sure that the man really was aware. He wouldn't trust her at her word alone. But that would be later.

"Well then, what do you have in mind?" he asks, and Cinder smiles. She had only needed three to get into Beacon for her plan, but a fourth person on the inside next semester offered opportunities…

* * *

/

Author Notes:

I'll admit, I like the team names I've come up with so far. Team PWBY (Puberty) was funny, Team JEM (Gem) was functional. But I have no clue what Team Jaune/Cinder/Mercury/Emerald would be called. Team MEJC = Majesty? Team MJEC = Magic?

But normally team names start with their leader, so... CMEJ CMJE CJEM CJME CEMJ CEJM...

Well, it's a bit of a moot point, since the idea isn't that Jaune enters as part of their team, but as a Beacon student directly.


	20. Underworld 4

**Underworld**

* * *

Disclaimer: I still don't own RWBY.

* * *

 _/_

 _"Thy soul is by vile fear assailed, which oft so overcasts a man, that he recoils from noblest resolution, like a beast at some false semblance in the twilight gloom."_  
― Dante Alighieri, _Inferno_

 _/_

* * *

"I hear you're going to be going back to school," Roman said.

"Because I just told you that?" Jaune said, rolling his eyes. No, because Roman obviously had his own sources and spies. Duh. This was just him showing off that he'd known what was going on before Jaune did, before Jaune told him. Roman grinned in faux innocence, and Jaune grinned in faux ignorance.

"Congratulations," Roman said. "You've come a long ways from that hungry thug who gave his own name at a robbery. I'm so proud to have been a part of that," he said with exaggerated fondness.

"I learned from the best of the worst of men," Jaune claimed, equally insincere. Both looked at each other for a beat, and both couldn't keep a straight face for long. They laughed.

Roman wiped a tear of mirth from his eye. "Oh, that was rich. Thanks. But I mean it- you've come far, kid."

Jaune smiled, not the cheerful and innocent smile of an Arc that reached the eyes but the confidant smile of a [scoundrelthugmurderer] confidant and ambitious young man.

"I meant it to- I learned a lot from you, even if you never did unlock my aura," he remembered, the faintest bit of accusation in his tone.

Roman waved that aside. "Can you imagine if I unlocked the aura of every punk I hired?" he asked. "I'd have no peace, and they still wouldn't be able to tie their own shoes without help. Probably blast their own feet off or something."

"Or something," Jaune agreed. "I, at least, can tie my own shoes."

"But not your own tie," Roman noted. "Still buying clip-ons to go along with that shoddy suit?" he asked, a familiar mocking tease.

Jaune rolled his eyes and said something that his sister most certainly had not taught him. Roman chuckled, but then got back to business, folding his hands before his mouth.

"You've learned a lot so far," Roman acknowledged. "How'd you like to learn more?"

"Sure," Jaune agreed instantly. More knowledge, more skills, more power- more of that was always better. They'd help him life a long, profitable life. "What lesson do you have in mind?"

"I'm not thinking of lessons. I'm thinking of something more… enduring," Roman said. "We've got a good arrangement going on here," he said. "It'd be a shame to lose it."

Jaune's eyes widened in surprise. "Are we talking some sort of partnership?" he asked, not quite able to believe it.

Roman laughed again, but this time it was at him, not with him. "Oh, that's a good one kid. You really are ambitious, aren't you?" he asked. "No, not even close… though I suppose you're not that far either. Call it more of an… apprenticeship," he framed.

"You work for us. You get a small share of the profits, but a big share of the teaching points. Training, tips, contacts and combat practice. Heck, I'll even introduce you to my tailor and weapon smith. You get better, you get a bigger cut, and we all go home rich and happy. You get good enough, and one day, maybe, we talk partners- if you don't want to leave and do your own thing. Your choice."

"You want me to keep working for you and Cinder? Isn't that what I'm already doing?" Jaune asked.

"I'm not talking about you working for Cinder," Roman said neutrally.

"Then what-" Jaune paused, realizing the better question to ask. "Then who is 'us'?" he asked.

A boot stuck itself beside his head. When he turned his head to look at it, it kicked him in the face. Hard.

He rode the blow with his aura and landed in a roll. Jaune came up with his cleaver, ready to fight, ready to make someone bleed. He's been fighting Mercury enough that a kicking-style doesn't freeze him in fright anymore, and right now these tinted glasses are making him see _red_. He'll _murder_ whoever dared attack him and-

Roman's tisking stops it all.

"Now Neo, that's no way to make an offer. You might scare him off with all your power, and then where would we be?" Roman asked with fake concern. The dichromatic girl, pink and dark brown, pouted.

"This is your partner?"Jaune asked, a frown on his face even as he still gripped the cleaver. By her contemptuous smirk, she wasn't the least bit concerned.

"You might say that I'm her partner," Roman said. "This is Neo- she doesn't talk much, but then she doesn't need to. We're basically two peas in a pod," he claimed. "She's a master thief, stunning beauty, and has excellent taste in ice cream… and she has more power behind those pretty laces than both of Cinder's minions combined. And one hell of a kick, as you might have noticed."

[The image of Mercury's iron boot coming down through his face is replaced by the point a high-quality and classy white heel. The bloody result is the same.]

"And?" Jaune prompted, feeling he was expected to.

"And here's the deal- you work for us, we teach more than Cinder ever will, and about things Beacon never would. Go along with her plan, go to Beacon- but when I'm out of the picture, you don't just listen to Cinder. You do what Neo tells you to do, when she tells you to do it, and we all walk away richer and freer for it."

"You're planning a double-cross?" Jaune asked, not quite believing it. He'd thought that Roman was as afraid of Cinder as he was.

"Of course not," Roman denied. "Didn't you just hear me say that you should do what she wants?" Neo nodded, before she leaned near Roman's ear and moved her lips, which Roman pretended to hear. "Hm? What did you say, Neo? It'd be stupid to share a double-cross with someone who could run off and ruin it? Yes, that would be a terribly stupid and amateurish way to go about a back-stab."

Jaune flushed just a tad behind his red sunglasses. "Point taken," he muttered. Especially in the underworld, you have to earn a reputation before being trusted. On the black market, no customer trusts the offer that seems too good to be true, and no seller trusts the customer to eager to go along with your offer.

[ _"Lucky for you I'm not a customer, am I?" she asked with a smile. "I can help you," she offered, extending a hand. "Let me help you," she urged._ ]

Roman leaned forward. "But doing a double-cross right… that _is_ the sort of thing I can teach you. First tip being- three can keep a secret if two of them are dead. Think on it. So, what do you say, kid? Power, knowledge, wealth, experience- I can give you more, more than Cinder ever would trust you with. Heck, I'll even teach you to dress with actual style and class. All you'd have to do is keep doing what you've doing for a little while longer."

[ _After so many bad choices- after so many failures of taking his life into his own hands- he'd let things happen as they would, just this once. He'd choose to follow whatever path Fate or the Creator had in mind._ ]

(He'd woken up here, not in a place of heroes and morals. Alea iacta est, as they said in the old tongue.)

"Well, those are some of my favorite things. You make a very compelling argument," Jaune said in response. "But I'd like to know what I'm getting into… sir."

Roman grinned. "How about I tell you the next stage in our plan. The Breach is what will set up everything after…"

* * *

/

Author Notes:

This rounds out the 'relevant players' micro-arc that was referenced in Underworld 1. The underworld groups that have shaped Jaune's criminal formation, and provide the opportunities for the future. They aren't in contradiction, yet, but if/when they do... well, Jaune's keeping his options open now, not saying 'no' to anyone, but one day he'll have to commit. Radical revolutionary proving that Humans and Faunus can co-exist (in crime)? Hunter in on the conspiracy to burn the world? The classiest sort of self-interested criminal?

Call it the poll question for the audience, just so you can share your thoughts and ambitions for Jaune. Who would _you_ like our common criminal to end up with at the end?

Changing notes- kudos to all the creative team names submitted from last chapter. I especially liked the suggestions of MJEC for 'Majestic', and (substituting Neo for Cinder) 'JEMN' for 'Gemini.' Who says the team leader actually needs to come first?

It was asked what 'Schnee jails' meant. Think of it as a parallel, unofficial addition to the justice system that's run (or at least believed to be run) by Schnee corp. Believing that an ounce of deterrance is worth a pound of dust, Schnee gets a reputation of making the prison lives of convicted Dust criminals a living hell. Rumors of prisons so corrupt that the Wardens are in the pockets of the Schnees, or prison gangs that do favors in exchange for perks and priviligaes, and a variety of informal and unofficial punishments on the side. Listing all the bad things would probably raise the rating to an 'M', so let's just go with saying that Jaune believes, rightly or wrongly, that if he was caught after the dust crimes that he'd be sent to the sort of jails that make a point of making you their prison *****. Don't drop the soap and all that.

Weiss would be horrified at the suggestion/implication that this goes on and is in any way related to Schnee Corp business practices. And it may not be- officially. Or from the top. Or at all. But that's what Jaune hears and believes from his corner of the the criminal underworld, and it scares him.

And that's all for now, folks.


	21. Underworld 5

**Underworld**

* * *

Disclaimer: I still don't own RWBY.

* * *

 _/_

 _"Thy soul is by vile fear assailed, which oft so overcasts a man, that he recoils from noblest resolution, like a beast at some false semblance in the twilight gloom."_  
― Dante Alighieri, _Inferno_

 _/_

* * *

Jaune, 'Just Jaune' to anyone who makes the mistake of believing the news or reminding him of his family name, is a man on the fall with a promising future in the underworld. He'll be an uncommonly good criminal one day, even if he's still just a common criminal for now. He has ambition and potential and his future is bright, in a negative sort of way.

People are starting to notice him now- to know about him, if not know him directly. He doesn't need to whistle for the faunus of the White Fang to part their pack and let him through- the ones who've seen the pictures of Tukson will tell the rest. He doesn't need to wave a bloody cleaver or be backed by a squad of White Fang soldiers to rob a store, he just gives the shopkeeper a stare that says 'I can already see you dead and dying if you stay in my way.' So long as they don't- if they take that once chance to give up the goods, and they _always_ choose to give up in the face of a man who's always seeing murder before his eyes, they survive.

(Cinder calls it the efficacy of fear- to use a threat so well that it never has to be carried out or even explicitly made. Terrorism at its best, so fine and bloodless that it's almost moral. One day someone will call it a bluff, and one day he'll be forced to do something uncommon to prove his credibility, but not yet. This will not be the day- for now he's still just the worst sort of common criminal, a murderer and an enabler and a thief and a liar and other terrible things that sadly are far too easily found to be uncommon. He still has further to fall.)

When he goes to the Club to talk business with Junior, the bouncer outside gets out of his way and warns the rest that Jaune is back. Some cheer and approach with false friendliness- he ignores them. When the Malachite twins approach seeking free drinks, they quickly stop flirting and regard him with the wariness of a fellow predator. Jaune patiently waits as the Boss is informed that he has a short-notice meeting, nods to the bartender (some pink-eyed Beacon student sneaking a job on the side- Jaune gives a generous tip and advises him to stay in school), and nods to the DJ before having a civil and professional meeting discussing arms shipments and dust smuggling with Mr. Xiong. No one thinks to check a calendar to see if it's been three months yet, or if that passed long ago. No one even raises the question.

(Long ago or not, he thinks about _making_ Junior apologize for what he did back then- for the beating and the kicks and throwing him out after the burglary. Thinks about it, but decides against it- he might be able to beat the man down now, but it would lose support and cost a vendetta. Jaune doesn't intend to cause loose ends for Mercury or Neo or anyone else to resolve, lest they decide to resolve him as well. Besides, when he's through he'll be strong enough that the mob boss will get on his knees and beg for forgiveness, without a single punch being thrown. That's real power. The sort of ambition Jaune has.)

With the fame comes a certain amount of infamy. When the media talks about Roman Torchwik, they mention his notorious lieutenant 'Justin John,' the alias more famous than his own (old) name. People who have never heard of the Arcs put their children in at night and warn them of Justin John. The police grow increasingly desperate, picking up anyone in the thug suit on the off-chance it might be him- even if the suspect in question is the wrong height (could be mis-remembered), or the wrong hair color (could be dyed), or is actually a woman (no comment).

A few ambitious but less competent criminals get caught while calling themselves his name, or what they think his name is. 'Justin John's' crime wave is the work of a ring of petty criminals, each offering a cut and bit of tribute through Roman's channels in return for borrowing the name. Jaune is bemused at his first criminal fan club, but much less so when they stoop to home invasions and all that implies. Bemusement becomes something far worse when some of their crimes come to light, crimes he's never done and would never do as a common criminal, but he never does anything about it because he never has a chance to. Someone else gets to them first, and afterwards the corpses are found dead in a circle, fingers pointing at each other with the same bloody message between them. 'That one's John.' The Lieutenant shows him the grisly photo before it makes the news, a favor from his friends in the White Fang, and what do you know, no one else claims to be Jaune.

There's just one Jaune in the Vale underworld, and he's just Jaune. No Arc- ever, not anymore, not for anyone. The last goon to call him that, some idiot from their hometown who tried to suck up with familiarity by dropping Jeanne's name and saying how proud she must be that her brother is doing so well for himself, became the public example of the fruits of Mercury's combat training. It's brutal, painful, and as bone-breaking as one of the Blonde Bombshell's increasingly frequent raids on their minor operations that she leads her three-woman team on. This time he has the images of his handiwork spread around himself, in the same sort of emails that still carry the image of bloody Tukson. This fool survives, but only so that he can live as an example and a warning. Only the foolish, or the powerful, are brave enough to remind him of his family name, and only the truly powerful get away with it unscathed.

(The first time Emerald does it, thinking she's found a nerve to pluck for fun, is the first time he gives her a black eye. She gives him far worse- leaves him as beaten as the he'd left the fool, with her blades at his throat and with Mercury trying to restrain her wrath- but the point is made. A more exasperated than disappointed Cinder tells her minions to not bring it up again, Roman doesn't care enough to care, and Neo… well, Neo doesn't say anything, but she's probably got him pegged for a sister-complex or something if he's starting to understand her many mocking grins. She's wrong, though- he disclaims any relation to that family which died long ago, not just the not-Arc sister who died a liar.)

Jaune's explorations into his potential are taking him deeper and deeper into the underworld, and it wouldn't surprise him that his more virtuous counterparts up above are starting to take note. A dossier is slowly put together after the Justin John crime spree, but it's so chaotic and counter-intuitive that only a steely bird-eyed watcher would be able to pull the facts away from the fiction and the false-flag fakers. A bounty is even put on his head, though it's so vague and lacking information that no real Hunter ever takes it.

The only ones who do, the Bombshell's trainee trio who see 'Justin John' as the next lead to Roman, are so blatant in trying to find him (and so clueless about what he looks like that they only know to look for a mook with red glasses with the White Fang) that Cinder moves him to another safehouse and sets a trap.

The trap she sets for them fails, but they get the point and stop searching for him so obviously. Right now it's ambitious amateurs, but it's a milestone: people above are taking note.

* * *

/

 _(In the highest tower of Beacon, Headmaster Ozpin grimaces as he reviews the mission failure report from Team PWBY- no major injuries, but nothing good either. No sign of Miss Belladonna, who hasn't been seen since the tragedy at the docks. No sign of Roman Torchwick or the Conspirators. Not even a lead to follow up on their actual target this time. The grimace turns into a frown as he rereads the message from his friend Qrow. 'Queen gains new pawn, nearing promotion.' It's grim news, and dark clouds are approaching from afar. Perhaps he best call James and Qrow in early after all- his own gambits didn't seem to be paying off, but perhaps theirs might. It's a chance he regrets but has to take.)_

/

* * *

/

Author Notes:

...you know people, when I asked who you wanted Jaune to end up with at the end, I was kind of thinking of **_criminal factions._** Not girls. The shipping goggles are strong with these ones...

(Though perhaps not as strong as the person who seemed to be suggesting Jaune with Adam Tauros. Back in chapter 11. On the grounds that if Blake had been killed, then Adam would be depressed and it'd be up to Jaune to go after him and become partners because only he can 'calm the beast.')

Onto other thoughts, people have all sorts of great ideas of how this could all unfold. And apparently this fic reminds some people of Madoka Magica levels of depression, while others still have a little glimmer of hope that things will turn out alright by the end.

Mwahahahahaha.

Cough. Sorry, I have a case of MCS, Maniacal Cackling Syndrome. It kicks in whenever I know things that you don't. Or have an evil, evil idea. Or both. I am a sadist, after all. I probably shouldn't do such a thing. Just laughing about it would probably make some of you paranoid.

Mwahahahaha.


	22. Underworld 6

**Underworld**

* * *

Disclaimer: I still don't own RWBY.

* * *

 _/_

 _"Thy soul is by vile fear assailed, which oft so overcasts a man, that he recoils from noblest resolution, like a beast at some false semblance in the twilight gloom."_  
― Dante Alighieri, _Inferno_

 _/_

* * *

/

Jaune, 'Just Jaune,' is a man on the fall with a promising future in the dark associations of the underworld. Everything he could ever have wanted, everything he used to be desperate for, is starting to come into his grasp: power, fame, money.

He's growing stronger, can take a hit that would put a common person six feet under, and can do the same to others if he has reason to. He can see a future in which he'll be able to do what he wants because he wants to, and not have to do anything he doesn't want to simply because he doesn't want to, and isn't that what real power is all about? To have the final choice over your own life?

He could get a girl if he wanted: not just a tramp or a whore to warm his bed but pretty human girls to show off at the Club, or even one of the faunus ladies of the White Fang if he really wanted. He knows there are those who would fear him too much to say 'no,' but there are also those who find a bit of fear attractive. He could take what he wanted if he wanted, if he were that sort of uncommon criminal, or he could just say the right words and pretty little lies and receive it freely. It doesn't hurt that he's rich now- seriously well off now, thanks to the dust heist commissions and the simple skill of stealing and paying almost nothing at all for his needs. He's not a street hoodlum living paycheck to paycheck and living in ratty apartments and scrounging for the cheapest food to fill his belly. He could buy pancakes and cookies and high-cut steak for breakfast, lunch, and dinner if he wanted. He could be like Roman, and Roman highly encourages this, and dress in fine suits and smoke fine cigars and commission a fine weapon unique to him.

Instead he practically lives like a monk. He's gathering his strength, hoarding information and knowledge like a packrat and only spending what he has if it gets him something more. He doesn't look for a girl, doesn't even have faith in the nice ones: good nice girls would recoil and turn on him once they realized what he is, and bad girls who are nice aren't to be trusted at all. So he brushes off the flirting at the Club and rolls his eyes at Emerald's exposed skin and doesn't even entertaining a fantasy about Cinder (who he knows, without a doubt, would never choose him over her own ambitions: would sooner burn him alive than risk a chance on her conspiracy). He still dresses in his rough cheap goon suit with his simple red sunglasses and clip-on tie, and he still wields a crappy red cleaver that people swear they can still see the blood on. Even though he has enough money to get something better, even though he has so much money that he could buy back Crocea Mors if he wanted to-

 _["Weapons are amazing!" she claimed. "They're like an extension of your soul! Someone's weapon says a lot about them. I just had to have the best weapon possible to be the best Hero I could be!"]_

-he doesn't, doesn't even bothering stealing that piece of the Arc soul, because he's not Jaune Arc he's just Jaune and what he has is-

 _["Cheap mass-produced garbage for thugs and low-lifes," she judged immediately]_

-good enough for him for now. Maybe one day, when he's leveled up a bit more and has done something befitting a truly exceptional criminal like everyone thinks Justin John is, he'll commission a weapon like Roman's and live more like Roman and be someone and something he's not quite yet. One day Crocea Mors might become a trophy he keeps around simply to remind himself what he came from and how low he started. Maybe. Eventually. Not today. Today he's still just Jaune. Instead he'll save his money and build his strength and ignore untrustworthy women and gather his resources in preparation- anything and everything that will allow him to live according to his own choices. The day he makes his move, it will be so remarkable that it will become legendary in the criminal underworld.

Jaune, just Jaune, has the making of being a remarkable criminal one day, even if he's still just barely a common criminal for now. He has ambition and potential and his future is bright, in a negative sort of way- and everyone else's future is darker because of it.

/

* * *

/

( _Jaune Arc is trapped behind a glass wall of red lenses, screaming and crying for someone to save him, to save everyone, from himself and what he is becoming. No one can hear him. Not even his own body will listen to him. And because Just Jaune puts on the red-tinted glasses first thing every morning, no one can see it in his eyes either. He's lost his way and has no more chances and no choice but to watch in horror as his body does what he's always feared. No one around would ever save him, and the only one alive who would care can't find him he's fallen so far._ )

/

* * *

/

Author Notes:

Hi Jaune Arc! Haven't seen you in awhile. Thought you died or something.

With this we've hit the first third of 'Underworld,' which I like to think of as the character establishment arc for Jaune's life of crime. By this point you should have a good feel for the character dynamics in play, of at least an inkling. With that established, plot's going to start picking up again pretty quick.

Plot picks up again tomorrow. For reals. It's going to be fast, but on the bright side a fan favorite returns!


	23. Underworld 7

**Underworld**

* * *

Disclaimer: I still don't own RWBY.

* * *

 _/_

 _"Thy soul is by vile fear assailed, which oft so overcasts a man, that he recoils from noblest resolution, like a beast at some false semblance in the twilight gloom."_  
― Dante Alighieri, _Inferno_

 _/_

* * *

/

Time passes. Preparations are drawing to a close. Schemes are set into motion.

Jaune is at the center of it. He's watching it go down- watching as the Breach prepares to burst. As forces are gathered. The White Fang marshals its strength and supporters, with Roman providing the toys. He helps- he even learns how to pilot one of the stolen mechs, though he never does anything more serious than park it in the building. The stage is set.

Crowds enter. The hatred and hope of the oppressed is on full display, not knowing that if all goes to plan this season could be their last. He doesn't try to warn them, though. He doesn't even entertain the thought of telling them to flee. [He's gone through it a thousand times behind the shades and on both sides of the red wall both but comes to the same conclusion each time- even if he tried it wouldn't work, the last thing he'd see is a boot coming down on his face, the person wearing it having an expression of malicious glee whether it be or Mercury or Neo or the monster that is he-]

He's a part of this, a common criminal that's a cog in the machine of the crime of the century. He watches once more with the eyes of a bouncer, looking for those who don't belong in that planned space. And, thanks to that experience as a bouncer with an eye for the subtle signs of looming trouble, that customer who's just not right and doesn't seem to be enjoying themselves like everyone else, he does.

He spots her from his position in the cockpit of the mech. She's wearing a mask, but the black hair and cat ears that look like a bow are distinctive enough to match Roman's little name. Because he's hidden in the cockpit, she doesn't see him seeing her. He pauses only long enough to check if it's her before he makes the choice to make the call and activates his radio.

"Roman," he says, whispering through the ear bud in the thief's ear. "Don't look, but I found Black Cat."

Roman Torchwick has the discipline not to look, not to give himself away. "How certain are you?" he asks, faking a conversation with Neo. All Neo does is stand and look pretty and have a smile that suggests she's listening to an inside joke, which to be fair isn't far from the truth. From her perspective, she too can catch a glimpse of Black Cat without giving herself away.

"Matches the photo," Jaune says. One of the photos a camera had only managed to take because she'd been taking down a White Fang safe house on her own.

"Is she with anyone?" Roman asks.

Jaune looks and sees [the ghost of a blond boy beside her, face a bloody crater that-]

"No one."

Roman doesn't nod- that might give him away. "Good. Neo? Take her down."

The silent woman makes a small show of taking her leave to go to the restroom. No one sees her loop around to the entrance, cutting off that escape. No one pays her any mind as she daintily steps through the crowd from the rear.

The black haired cat faunus's first clue that she's been found is when Neo's umbrella crashes into the back of her knees, forcing them to buckle, sending her crashing to the floor. She never has a chance after that, and is subdued in short order. Her face, alone and just slightly afraid, betrays confusion until she looks at the Paladin. Her unforgettably golden eyes lock with the camera, locks with his own on the other side of the screen, and he knows she knows.

"Alright people! Pardon the disturbance!" Roman says to calm the crowd. "We just had a little cat problem we had to resolve. Don't worry, the show will go on!" he said, handing the microphone to the White Fang spokesperson before leaving to follow where the thugs and Neo had taken their prisoner.

Jaune, stuck in the mech cockpit, doesn't follow. He doesn't even wonder what they intend to do- interrogation to figure out how much she knows, and then death because she already knows too much. There's a silver-lining that she was caught by Roman and Neo- they may be murderers, but they're the sort of criminals who pride themselves on having style and standards. Rape is a special sort of evil, for a separate sort of scum that even Cinder and Roman don't tolerate in their employ.

Whatever else her misfortune, at least the cat-eared girl still has a choice. Her end will be painless if she cooperates, and much less so if she doesn't. If she's truly stubborn she'll be handed over to the White Fang as a race-traitor, left to the tender mercies of their boss. Even Jaune has heard the whispers and felt a fraction of the fear the White Fang holds for the leader who tells them who to bite when and how hard.

It's a lesson for everyone, the announcer explains to the audience. Everyone who tries to stop them- everyone who has tried to stop what is to come- has failed. Will fail. Will die. Be it brave fighters or cowardly traitors or the sneakiest of children brave enough to play hero. Nothing will stop the night that is about to fall, nothing can prevent the bloody revolution that has been prepared to evolve this corrupted world. Anyone who gets in the way will be burned. It's not just Cinder and Roman he refers to- it is people like Neo, people like Mercury and Emerald, people like Jaune himself- it's them who will shatter the hope and peace of the current age. The darkness will fall, must fall, for a new day and the dawn of a new age to rise. Join now, get aboard and make your place in the new order, or suffer the fate of fools who try to stand against it and be crushed by the inevitable.

He tunes out the speaker and doesn't wonder what will become of the black-haired girl with unforgettable golden eyes. Instead he eventually leaves for the night with accolades and praise for identifying the huntress before she could cause a disruption. Roman gives him a lucrative bonus, Cinder sends word that she's finished making arrangements for false transcripts to Beacon next semester, and the White Fang who know give him room and deference for finding another traitor. It is, from a pragmatic point of view, a good night for him. Mercury and Emerald send a message suggesting he celebrate, treat them all to something nice for dinner.

Jaune doesn't because [all food tastes like ash and] he despises their freeloading, and also because he doesn't need to. Just like he doesn't ask Roman what ultimately becomes of the girl. There's no point in asking questions he doesn't need the answers to.

/

* * *

/

 _(His imagination is more than sufficient. Jaune Arc's dreams and Jaune's waking hours gain a new ghost- now the blond haired boy with a tail and bloody Tukson are accompanied by the ghost of Black Cat. Unlike Crater Face One and Two, her injuries are never consistent- the only constants are the ever-watching golden eyes that know it is his fault.)_

/

* * *

/

Author Notes:

Your wails and gnashing of teeth shall serenade me as I feast upon your despair and wash it down with your bitter tears. Mwahahaha.

On the brighter side of thing- lots of good Jaune fics got updated yesterday (and the day before)! It felt like a slow last week and or two, but what's with everyone doing it all at once? If you found this depressing, 'One Good Turn' should be your antidote to this, followed by the latest chapter of 'Auburn.' And 'Gamer Girl.' Go read those if you're hoping for some (non-necro) BlakexJaune shipping. This Jaune ain't into ghosts. Neither of them are.

(And, 23 chapters later, I'm glad people finally realize that there are two personalities at play. Not bad, considering Just Jaune was first introduced by name back in... chapter 8.)


	24. Underworld 8

**Underworld**

* * *

Disclaimer: I still don't own RWBY.

* * *

 _/_

 _"Thy soul is by vile fear assailed, which oft so overcasts a man, that he recoils from noblest resolution, like a beast at some false semblance in the twilight gloom."_  
― Dante Alighieri, _Inferno_

 _/_

* * *

/

He has a sense of déjà vu when he once again faces an offer from red and black opportunity. For once he isn't faced with Ruby Rose, idealist prepared to die for her beliefs. He meets someone far, far more terrifying- an idealist prepared to kill for his beliefs.

"Are you Justin John?"

"Just Jaune," he corrects without a sigh, rubbing his eyes. That name is going to be the death of him at this rate. Ever since the story of his initial criminal debut and the media name got out, most people think that really is him- that Justin John is the real criminal, and that Jaune is just an alias. People joke about an accent he doesn't actually have, thinking he's someone he really isn't [yet], and even some of the goons call him by that now. One of these days he may start responding to it, just because it'll be easier than correcting everyone all the time. Emerald think it's hilarious- but then, Emerald laughs when Mercury jokes about punting babies.

The red haired man (faunus, horns, but the most frightening thing isn't the grimm mask but the man behind it with the sword) doesn't seem the type to make a joke. Here merely nods in acknowledgement of the correction.

"Jaune," he greets evenly. "You are the one who found the traitors?" he asks, seeking confirmation. "The deserter and the girl taken in at the rally."

"Sure," Jaune acknowledges [the ghosts he sees in this waking dream- one little two little three little faunus, all watching the irony of this conversation between White Fang and their favorite human] while fingering his cleaver. "What's it worth to you?"

"My attention," the man says bluntly. "I have spent a great deal of time and resources looking for the girl in particular. You did what many others failed to do. You have my gratitude," he said, not bowing or even nodding, and not sounding particularly thankful at all.

"You're welcome," Jaune says none the less. He knows, he realizes, that the man in front of him is probably the leader of the White Fang. He should be terrified. If he isn't going to run he should be trying to curry favor of some sort- if he's not going to just stay off the bad side, he should try to get on the good. There are connections he could be making, or ties he should be avoiding. One or the other. With them or against them- the White Fang doesn't tolerate half-measures and fair-weather associates.

He shouldn't get involved. He knows there is trouble he doesn't need to get into- Jaune all but lives to avoid getting caught in too much trouble these days. But Jaune Arc, conscience be damned, has to know. Won't shut up until he asks.

"Did you get everything you needed out of her?"

(Is it truly ghosts he sees when he's alone at night sleeping with only a weapon to feel safe, is he sanely seeing the supernatural as some part of his semblance, or is he hallucinating and crazy from being so twisted and wrong and not what he was supposed to be?)

"Her interrogation is over and she has been dealt with. That is all you need to know," the bull-horned man says stiffly.

(Jaune Arc falls silent behind the red wall in damning relief. If she's no longer being interrogated and been dealt with then she's dead, if she's dead than she's not hurting anymore, can't be hurt anymore, and her ghost is just all that is left to torment him until he gets what he deserves and-)

"Fair enough," Jaune says, washing his [blood soaked] hands of the matter. "Anything else you need?"

"A question," the man says. "I have heard many things about you- my Lieutenant say you are open minded about us, and that you're as fair as any human he knows. That is high praise from him. You have potential, and some small amount of skill. You could be living a good life anywhere else- so why are you here living the life of a common criminal, when you could be doing something greater?"

Jaune considered it. Considered why he was here and not [at Signal Academy, laughing at a forge as something pure and simple and good was created with the help of another champion of red and black conviction] elsewhere. Thought about why he was here.

[ _He'd let things happen as they would, just this once. He'd choose to follow whatever path Fate or the Creator had in mind._ ]

"You ever have the feeling that you're just meant to be somewhere in life? That all your life is pushing you to a point?" Jaune asked, not expecting to be taken seriously.

To his surprise, the red-haired man empathized. "My entire life has been a trial to approach this point," he said.

Jaune shrugged. "That's about it. I didn't get much of a choice except to take the chance I had. I don't think I had much of a say in the matter," he answered.

"You always have a say," Adam Tauros said [Ruby would say] with absolute conviction. "Life may be hard- it may be cruel and dash your hopes, there may be no guarantees except the prospect of being kicked when you're already down- but what you do in response to that is your choice. Giving up is a choice. Standing up to impossible challenges and trying to moving forward despite your weakness is a choice. It is the difference between defiance and defeat. Between making the best of a bad situation and settling for worse. Even if no one gives us a chance, we can still make choices that can change the world."

Jaune Arc might have rallied to that, inspired. Just Jaune had lost faith long ago. "If you say so," he said neutrally.

The leader of the White Fang looked at him with disgust, or possibly just disappointment. "I see you are not what I had hoped. A pity," he said. "Well then, Jaune, you have my thanks regardless. But if you change your mind- if you want to work for something greater and not just coin- let us know. We can always find a use for good souls."

/

* * *

/

 _(_ _Jaune watched him walk away in silence. He didn't bother to tell him that he'd be waiting a long time if he was waiting for that.)_

/

* * *

/

Author Notes:

Special announcement: on tomorrow (the 12th), I'll be posting the first chapter of my next fic, 'A Househusband Macho Or Something.' It is another Jaune-centric fic (as all my RWBY ideas seem to be), it too will be an update a day (though averaging 2k words an update rather than 1k), and it's just in time to finish on Father's Day. It will be an example of adult-oriented literature touching on a number of mature themes that-

No, it isn't porn you pervs. It's actually a family/romantic/dramatic comedy series. A non-harem series of shorts of Jaune as the stay-at-home dad with the various ladies of RWBY and JNPR: parallel stories off of the same theme, **_all_ ** of them ending on a happier note, though admittedly the laughs only really start by the end of chapter 2. Consider it your much-needed antidote for Common Criminal, which has no shipping and practically no comedy and where I won't tell you if the light at the end of the tunnel is a train or not. Point is, I'm looking forward to next week, and I'm sure many you you will have appropriate reactions.

(My, that couldn't be considered ominous at all...)


	25. Underworld 9

**Underworld**

* * *

Disclaimer: I still don't own RWBY.

* * *

 _/_

 _"Thy soul is by vile fear assailed, which oft so overcasts a man, that he recoils from noblest resolution, like a beast at some false semblance in the twilight gloom."_  
― Dante Alighieri, _Inferno_

 _/_

* * *

/

Everything is ready. The train is being loaded with dust. The path is set. Jaune is more than committed: at this point his survival depends on it. When the Grimm come, the only safe place between here and Beacon will be on that train ahead of them. And once they Breach… well, nowhere short of Beacon will be safe, but he'll have a head start on running. He's ready for that. He wants to survive. He wants to live. (No matter how many ghosts he sees tomorrow night).

So obviously, having found his resolve, he'd run into Ruby one last time.

Well, she runs into him, as she always seems to. Literally this time. No, really- she turns a corner and bounces off him onto the ground, and that's how she's (re)captured. Roman has her weapon and takes it away somewhere he never knows, some goons take her to a hasty cell, and that should be it. She never even sees his face.

All he has to do is turn away, and it will be the perfect break with the past. The Grimm can close this chapter of his life when they come through. No one else will ever know. No one he knows will even care. Ruby Rose, just one more victim of the Breach. It would be simple.

Instead Jaune follows. He tells Roman he's going to make sure she's safely locked away, how if goons can't tie their own shoes they sure can't lock a cell right. He tells the White Fang guards that he wants to interrogate her alone, to leave and help finish loading the train. He tells himself that he wants to know if she came here with allies, if anyone else is around who might affect the plan.

None of these are wrong.

It's almost heart breaking to watch her face when he enters the room with her little cell. She's simple enough that he can practically see the thoughts behind each expression he reads.

Defiance, when she thinks it is an enemy. Shock and disbelief, when she recognizes him and realizes he really is alive. A moment of hope and excitement, as she expects him to continue forward and unlock the door. Confusion and incomprehension, when he tells the guard to leave them and go finish loading the train even as he places a pillow with something in it on the desk on his side of the locked bars.

And the slow, slow realization and deeper hurt as she finally, finally, understands that he's not (that he's no longer) (that he never was) as good a person as she thought he was.

"You're… not here to help me, are you?" Ruby finally asked, already suspecting the answer.

"No, I'm not," Jaune anwered.

"You work with these people, don't you?" she asked sadly.

"Yep," Jaune admitted.

"You always did, didn't you?" It's not really a question at this point.

"Uhuh," Jaune said nonchalantly, watching as she drew her legs into her chest.

"Why?" She didn't even look at him, and that's what would have hurt the most were he not already so set on this path.

"Why not?"

He might have well have slapped her. Her posture of self-pity was replaced with an expression of utter incomprehension. She heard the words, but they made no sense. She tried to make a rebuttal, but it should have been so self-evident she didn't know how to explain it.

"Because it's _wrong_ ," she ultimately said. "It's not _right._ The world-"

"The world doesn't care," Jaune says with cynical conviction. "Wrong, right, it never has. Life isn't a fairy tale."

If it had been, if it was, he wouldn't be here. He would have woken up in that alley with her at his side, keeping his word, somehow ending at Signal as she kept hers, made that weapon with her, and done absolutely everything in his power to stop this. He would have, really, even if all he could do was what he was limited to from inside a jail cell. But he didn't end up at Signal with her, or even in a Schnee prison. Fate had different plans for him. The world isn't just uncaring- it was complicit.

"I care. People care. People matter," Ruby rejected. "Jaune, this isn't a story or a game. People as real as you and I are going to get hurt! We have to stop this! We have to save them!"

Jaune's shades sharply-angled shades seemed to glare at her, glare at her simple minded faith that good intentions alone could make a difference. "People are going to die," he bit out. "And there's nothing you or I can do to stop it."

"Yes, we can," Ruby Rose replied with equal conviction. "It's the first rule of heroes- 'First, Do No Evil.' Bad things wouldn't happen if people just stopped doing them," she reasoned. "If you didn't help them- if you just-"

Jaune laughed mockingly. "Me?" he asked. "Me? You think I'm the cause of this? That I'm responsible? That this depends on me?" He stepped forward, and Ruby resisted the urge to step back despite the bars between them. Even at his lowest, he had a conviction that rivaled her own.

"Ruby, there are people behind this you can't even imagine. Bad people, wicked people, people with the power to crush anyone who gets in their way. People who have already crushed obstructions and burned loose ends. It. Is going. To happen. Whether I help it or not."

"You don't know that if no one's tried. You could try," Ruby retorted, but she was looking away. Jaune continued, wanting to break that foolish confidence. To make her give up on her suicidal fantasy.

"Oh, but I do know. People _have_ tried," he said. "A hunter fell before us. A traitor with a conscience tried to flee us. We even captured a huntress. Captured! Left to our tender mercies! Just like you! Do you know what they all had in common?" he asked rhetorically.

"At least they tried to do the right thing," Ruby answered defiantly.

"They _failed_. They _died_. And it's-"

[ _"My fault. Everything my fault," he tries to explain, tries to make her believe so that she'll be disgusted as she should and turn her back like she inevitably would and leave him, just like all the other good people in his life who were better than him had._ ]

But it wasn't. Not really. He hadn't even been in the fight where Roman killed the blond haired boy. Mercury and Emerald would have gotten Tukson regardless- he hadn't even known their intent, and what had happened was as much self-defense as anything. And Black Cat, she-

[ _He pauses only long enough to check if it's her before he makes the choice to make the call and activates his radio._ ]

-she had no chance against Neo and Roman and a building of White Fang on her own. She'd practically signed her own death warrant herself by being there without a team of some sort. Even if Jaune hadn't said anything, hadn't seen her, someone else would have.

"And there's nothing I could have done to stop it," Jaune finished. Not on his own.

"Coward," Ruby muttered.

"What was that?"

Ruby glared at him, eyes flashing silver. "I said you're a coward, Jaune Arc," she repeated. Louder, more confidant, absolutely certain. "You say there's nothing you could have done, but in the end you just gave up, didn't you? You could have at least tried! You could have tried to do the right thing!"

"I did try!" Jaune roared, red glasses also flashing in the light. "I tried to live a good life! I tried not to become a bad guy! I tried and I tried, and just like them I failed! Every time I tried to make the best of things, to keep moving forward and choose the best of bad options, things got worse! There's nothing right about having to suffer or die in order to prove yourself a good person! If the only way I could live a sinless life was to starve like a good selfless boy, _then_ _I had no choice!_ "

"You had a choice," Ruby accused. "You always have a choice."

"How am I supposed to choose the right thing when the only choices I had were between bad and worse?" Jaune demanded. "I never had a chance!" Jaune said, bitter and angry.

"You disappeared every time I gave you one!" Ruby shouted back at last. "Every time I offered to help, you refused it! Every time I tried to bring you in, to be a friend so you wouldn't be alone, you stepped away! Don't blame Fate or the world or circumstances beyond your control! I gave you a chance, and every time you refused it to go down this path instead! What's the matter with you? Why would you choose such a thing?!"

She had the last word, the last shout, as Jaune and his stupid excuse of red glasses looked away in shame.

"I was trying to keep you safe."

/

* * *

/

Author Notes:

The long awaited reunion between Jaune and Ruby. Were you prepared? Because I don't think either of them were- not really. To be continued.

Also: today's the first day of 'Househusband Macho.' Give it a chance- and a day or two to hit it's stride. You'll appreciate it when it does.


	26. Underworld 10

**Underworld**

* * *

Disclaimer: I still don't own RWBY.

* * *

 _/_

 _"Thy soul is by vile fear assailed, which oft so overcasts a man, that he recoils from noblest resolution, like a beast at some false semblance in the twilight gloom."_  
― Dante Alighieri, _Inferno_

 _/_

* * *

/

"I was trying to keep you safe," Jaune muttered, looking away.

"What was that?" Ruby asked, righteous anger stirring again. If he dared claim that his life of crime and villainy was for her sake-

"I was trying to keep you from getting involved in this," Jaune said, looking back at her. "I don't want you getting hurt because of my mistakes. Because of my choices. Never. I didn't let you close because I didn't want you getting tangled up in my mess and risk you getting hurt- not at the club, not at the robbery you didn't even notice, not at the docks." Not in the alley, even if he hadn't been thinking of the implications of Mercury and Emerald returning at the time. Had she stayed with him- had she tried to stand up to the two murderers-

Ruby tried to remember the times they had met. Tried to remember the circumstances she'd found him in. Jaune didn't pay her any mind, and kept confessing.

"Ever since I got to Vale, keeping you out of my trouble has been the only good thing I could be proud of," Jaune confessed. "I've hurt people, Ruby. I've stood by as others were hurt in front of me, because I lacked the power to stop it and not be crushed myself. I'm weak, alright? I'm not strong enough to be a good person. I just thought-" he trailed, before finishing. "I hoped that as long as I kept you out of trouble, then maybe I wasn't such a bad person after all."

He sounded wistful in the admission. Ruby's anger quieted, her expression softened in empathy.

"Jaune…" she said, not quite sure what to say. "I didn't need to be protected- I'm a big girl. I drink milk. I can fight."

She would have. Really. That's what she wanted to do with her life- to help people who needed it, to fight for those who couldn't fight for themselves. She had a hard time thinking of anyone she'd ever met who'd needed help more than Jaune, whether it was when he was half-dead and delirious or woefully out of his depth or just as friend-less in the city as she had been. He'd been even more alone than she'd been, because at least she'd had close family and a home she could go back to.

"I would have helped," she said, instead of trying to say all that.

"And how's that working out for you, short stuff?" Jaune asked, glasses glancing at the cell around them. "See what good intentions get you?" He could have been cruel. Instead, he snarked.

"And how's that keeping me out of trouble thing working for you?" Ruby teased in return, looking at the same cell that she, and not he, was locked away in. "Still think you're not such a bad guy after all?"

A flash of irritation crossed Jaune's brow. If she'd just done what he intended- if she'd just stayed in Vale safe and sound and uninvolved-

(-and blissfully unaware of the Breach he was about to unleash, Grimm taking Signal by surprise as hordes flowed forth, overwhelming her as she no doubt tried to defend as many innocents as she could before claws and talons sliced her far worse than bloody Tukson-)

Everything stops. It really was that simple, wasn't it? He really had been a fool to think otherwise- to think that she could be kept safe from the consequences of his own decisions, and the ones he would make in the future.

( _Even if Ruby can't see him in the eyes behind the red shades- even if the only one who can hear him is the common criminal who wears his face and half his name- it isn't just Jaune watching from behind the glasses with fatalistic eyes. There's a vigor, an energy, an Arc behind them that's long been dormant.)_

The anger, the tension, the pretensions and self-justifications and guilt and ghosts and everything else flowed away just for a moment as he let it go.

"No, I'm the worst," he admitted, freely and without shame or evasion. "Total Bad Guy. Master criminal. Irredeemable villain of the week material, that's me."

"Oh, I don't know if I'd go that far," Ruby returned. "You look more like a common criminal to me. Flunky material at best," she snickered.

 _("Do you see now?" Arc asks, staring straight through the red glass to look him in the eyes. For once, Just Jaune doesn't ignore him- for once, he **listens** to what Jaune Arc has to say._ )

He chuckled at that dismissal of his entire underworld career. A chuckle given was a chuckle earned in return, which made him laugh, which made Ruby laugh, and soon the dam broke and they were both laughing like loons, like old friends with tears running down their faces and leaning into each other for support and ignoring the prison bars between them.

It ended with a snickers and smiles and a sad regret as he began to push himself away. But unlike previous encounters Ruby grabbed his wrist, not wanting to let them part so easily- not this time.

"It's not too late, Jaune," Ruby said. "You know this is wrong. Let me out. We can still stop this." She gave a smile, hoping against hope that at last he'd believe in her.

Jaune hesitates, for a heartbeat. And then another. And another. And another- enough that Ruby knows she has a chance to get through to him. Knows she has to choose her words carefully, but that it's not hopeless.

"You don't have to be alone, Jaune," Ruby offered with a smile. "I can help you. We can fight this together."

No weapon, no chance in a fight, but she'd try anyway if he'd just let her. She'd fight with him, just as she would anyone who tried to do the right thing. She'd fight _for_ him.

Jaune Arc smiled at her from behind the red glasses. He couldn't think of anything he wanted more.

Just Jaune smiled too, but sadly, because he could.

[ _"I don't want you combat ready or your help, I want you safe!" he shouted at them._ ]

"No," he said. "We can't. I meant what I said- there are people behind this more powerful than you can imagine. Even if we tried to take them on together, we'd both end up dead and they'd still carry it out."

Jaune gently broke her grip on his wrist and stepped away. That's his choice- no excuses, no mitigating circumstances, and no one to blame but himself. Just Jaune wants the final choice on how to live his life more than Jaune Arc wants the chance to die heroically with Ruby Rose. She can hate him all she wants, as long as she's still alive to do so.

There's no point in a pointless sacrifice at this point.

[ _There's nothing right about having to suffer or die in order to prove yourself a good person._ ]

/

* * *

/

Author Notes:

Man, this scene, this series of scenes, was a doozy to write. I rewrote it so many times, edited it every day of the posting period. Tried to make it better, and then undid things that had made it worse. At least now it's out there.

Does this feel bitter-sweet? I think this feels bitter-sweet. Poor Ruby- she chose the wrong thing to say. Shouldn't have mentioned fighting- way to make him remember his own words at the worst possible time.

On the happier side of things: today's day two of 'Househusband Macho.' Even when it deals with unpleasant things, at least it ends on a smile.


	27. Underworld 11

**Underworld**

* * *

Disclaimer: I still don't own RWBY.

* * *

 _/_

 _"Thy soul is by vile fear assailed, which oft so overcasts a man, that he recoils from noblest resolution, like a beast at some false semblance in the twilight gloom."_  
― Dante Alighieri, _Inferno_

 _/_

* * *

/

Ruby's smile doesn't drop, and he realized now that it had been just as sad as his. She wasn't surprised- disappointed, perhaps, but not surprised. You'd have to expect something better, rather than just hope, to truly be surprised.

"So this is how we end up, isn't it? On opposite sides. What's next, then?" Ruby asked, both resigned and resolved. "Going to pump me for information? See if I came alone? Use me as a hostage? You're the bad guy here- you tell me."

"Nothing," Jaune said. "Nothing's going to happen to you."

"Huh?" Ruby said, surprised.

"No need," Jaune explained. "I don't believe for a minute you came here alone, so we'll already be on guard for Huntresses. We don't have time to interrogate you, even if we were into torturing little girls- which I'm not. And we're about to leave to finish our evil plan, so…" he shrugged. "No point in it. And I'd bet anything holding you hostage would backfire somehow, and that's a risk we don't need. That's what I'll say, anyway, and I'm important enough to be listened to." It's not pride, not arrogance, simply a statement of fact.

Jaune gave her a kind smile, one that the common criminal wouldn't give anyone else. "I meant what I said about not wanting you hurt, Ruby. As long as you're locked up here, you'll be safe and sound until we leave."

"And then?" Ruby asked her enemy (her frenemy) (her friend).

"That's it. With a little luck your allies will be looking for you, unlock your cell, and you'll be safe and sound and far enough away from Vale to be stay that way."

Ruby's blood chilled. "Jaune? What happens to Vale?" she demanded, hands gripping the bars.

"That depends on how the plan goes. Hush hush secret," Jaune said, glasses hiding his eyes. He paused. "I'm sorry," he admitted as he turned to leave.

"Jaune? Jaune!" she called. "We'll stop you, Jaune! My family? We're heroes! If not me, then my sister and her team! Whatever you have in mind, we'll win and then you'll see! We'll prove it's never too late to do the right thing!"

Jaune paused, right by the table he'd put the pillow on when he entered. He looked at it a longer than he needed to, considering his response.

"I'll believe that when I see it, but I doubt I will," he ultimately said, even as he picked up the pillow.

"Just go to sleep, Ruby," he told her, tossing the pillow at the bars. "We'll be gone within the hour. When you wake up again, it will all be over. Everything won't be alright- I won't be here- but at least you'll be alive. Promise."

"Goodbye, Ruby," he said, having made his choice once again. Just Jaune Arc leaves the room, leaving Ruby behind for the last time.

He leaves the door open behind him, not even bothering to lock it from the outside. The jail cell is more than enough to make his position clear.

/

* * *

/

 **Super Duper Author Note for first-time readers:**

The next two chapters are skippable.

What follows next is something that won't make as much sense if you weren't following the story during the daily update phase. During the initial posting phase, the next chapter ('Underworld Finale') was the point of a cliff-hanger and a week-long hiatus. The following chapter, 'Divide per Ciphra,' is a deep-dive into the deep magic/metaphysics of the story. It's surreal, deliberately confusing, and remarkably different from the story to date most of the story that follows.

It is canonical. It has a lot of symbolism, call-backs, and foreshadowing. It puts a spot-light on things you hadn't looked at hard enough, and hints at things you should. It serves a useful purpose. It's quite the experience, and it was certainly fun for me.

But ultimately it ends up right where this chapter leaves off.

If you want to avoid surreal fantasy elements, go directly to 'Underworld Terminus.' The parts that won't stand on their own, can be divined on their own, or you won't notice. You can always come back later, and see what you missed.

But if you want the emotional punch everyone else went through, if you want to glimpse at the deep lore and deeper magic that's been underpinning this story the entire time, click 'next chapter.'

/

(Original) Author Notes:

This may seem a strange thing to remark on, but one of my favorite parts of this whole Ruby confrontation scene is the quote at the top of the Underworld chapter. Using a real-world quote is a great way to add a bit of pretension/ class to a fanfic, but the Underworld quote just hits a lot of points. Fear interfering with noble resolve? Overcast and darkness? The RWBY-appropriate mention of 'semblance'? The entire Underworld arc built up to this confrontation, and and Dante quote was perfect for Jaune in the context of this story. From the start, Jaune's fear has been the biggest obstacle to him leaving his path.

On a more somber note- the Underworld arc ends with the events of Underworld 12, a final look at Ruby before Jaune boards the train. Though it has had fewer chapters, those chapters have typically been longer and ultimately it comes out almost exactly the same as 'Common Criminal'. Now it's time for the next phase of the plan.

Prepare for suspense and uncertainty. Prepare for developments none have predicted. Prepare for the point of no return. Prepare to have your mind blown, your feelings played, your expectations shattered, and to re-read the entire damn story just to see for yourself. And definitely, definitely prepare tissues. Just in case your hopes are dashed.

Prepare yourself for: **Crossing Styx**


	28. Underworld Bad End

**Underworld**

* * *

Disclaimer: I still don't own RWBY.

* * *

 _/_

 _"Thy soul is by vile fear assailed, which oft so overcasts a man, that he recoils from noblest resolution, like a beast at some false semblance in the twilight gloom."_  
― Dante Alighieri, _Inferno_

 _/_

* * *

/

Jaune stepped out. Ruby stared spitefully at the present he left behind, wanting to kick it, to throw it away, to reject it as thoroughly as he'd rejected her offers of help.

She wanted to, couldn't see a reason not to, and so she did.

Ruby picked up the pillow, balled it up, and threw it as hard as she could at the far wall like it was a stress ball. She got good distance too- the pillow had more weight than she'd realized, and hit the wall with a satisfying 'thunk' and fell to the floor with a tingle.

Ruby blinked, and stared at the thing she had just thrown. That didn't sound right. Pillows didn't usually go 'thunk.' Or tingle.

[ _he tells the guard to leave them and go finish loading the train even as he places a pillow with something in it on the desk on his side of the locked bars_ ]

The pillow lazily falls over in just the right way that the thing(s) inside of it slide out. A scroll slowly falls out of the pillow case in a teasing slide. Just on top of it, mockingly clinking all the way down to the ground, is a ring of keys.

[ _With a little luck your allies will be looking for you, unlock your cell, and you'll be safe and sound and far enough away from Vale to be stay that way._ ]

"Oh, no," Ruby whispered, eyes widening in horror.

That was her scroll! And she'd bet anything that those were the keys to her cell! And she'd just-!

"No, no, no, no, no!"

Ruby didn't cuss- wasn't the kind of girl to- but if she was she would now. Instead she paces, nervously smoothing down her combat skirt and pulling at her hair and putting her hands together in a cycle of nerves. Considered her situation, and looked for brighter side of things.

She'd finally gotten through to him- finally caught up and caught him and convinced him to trust her, even if he wasn't willing to admit it or do so openly- he'd dared to give her a chance like she'd just yelled at him to do-

 _And she'd thrown it away!_

If only this were a bad dream-

[ _"Just go to sleep, Ruby," he told her, tossing the pillow at the bars. "We'll be gone within the hour. When you wake up again, it will all be over. Everything won't be alright- I won't be here- but at least you'll be alive. Promise."_ ]

Alright. Bad choice of words.

It's too early to panic. It is too early to panic It is still too early to panic, dust it!

She can still do something, right? It's not too late. It's never too late. It's never supposed to be too late.

Maybe she can reach it somehow, drag it closer. In a heartbeat with her semblance she takes off her cloak, tries to make an improvised… something. She doesn't know what- just has a vague idea that if she can throw the hood over the pillow and keys and drag them over.

The first throw of her cloak goes in the wrong direction due to air resistance. That's totally okay, just warming up, haha.

Her second's no better. It's hard to throw an empty cloak with any distance and direction without it fluttering and stopping due to air resistance. If only she had, I don't know, a pillow or something to give it a bit of weight. But, hey! Third time's the charm, right?

Or fifth.

Or ninth.

Or- almost! Fifteenth time almost worked! Got right over it! Only she was throwing while standing, and the flutter as it fell to the ground shifted direction. So she gets to the floor, not minding the dust on her combat skirt, and keeps trying. Arm as far past the bar as she can, pushing her limits of reach and flexibility as she tries again and again. No pain no gain, right?

She pulls a muscle in her arm, right as she's throwing the cloak. Her grip loosens, and she can only watch in horror as it flies out of her grip.

Amazingly, it lands right on the pillow. Ironically, the tail lands right out of reach. Not even taking off her shoe or trying other things can reach the cloak to reach the pillow. She's left, straining to reach as far through the bars as she could, a few inches too short.

It's just out of reach, just as Jaune has always been.

[ _"Jaune? Jaune!" she called. "We'll stop you, Jaune! My family? We're heroes! If not me, then my sister and her team! Whatever you have in mind, we'll win and then you'll see! We'll prove it's never too late to do the right thing!"_ ]

She hears the train pull away. Jaune's onboard, she knows. She doesn't know who else is. If anyone else will be. If her own family could be- doesn't know if they knew where to look, when to be.

If only she had told them. She can't say even she didn't have the chance- the scroll was right there, was practically in her hands, before she literally threw the opportunity away. Because she was angry and childish and chose to act like Jaune when he'd finally tried to help her help him, and now the results were right there where she could see it but never reach it.

Even if she could, though- even if she got it right now, could she make a difference? She's the one who said it was never too late to try, she's the one who accused him of being at fault and responsible for the consequences of his own decisions, but right now the finger's pointing back at her. Whatever happens now, happens because she didn't help stop it. Because she'd rejected a chance, no matter how awkward or tentatively extended, from someone else. Someone too afraid to ask for help openly.

There are differences in context and culpability, to be sure, but what's more important is the similarities. Her own words haunt her, just as much as his. But it's her mistake today will haunt her even longer.

"Jaune, please, come back," she cries as the last sounds of the train fade, even though she knows it's useless. "I'm sorry."

It's childish and pitiful and unbecoming of a Huntress, but right now she is not a Huntress just a child, and the child regrets her mistake and wants to apologize to the person she knows it's going to hurt most.

But it's already too late. The damage is done. Train's already left the station, Jaune's gone forever, and she'll never see him again. All they'll have to remember of each other is how they parted. When Jaune Arc tried to let her help, gave her a chance to stop him in deeds if not words, and she never showed.

[ _"I'll believe that when I see it, but I doubt I will," he ultimately said, even as he picked up the pillow._ ]

It's too late now. Even though a chance breeze blows through and blows her cloak in reach- even though she gets back her cloak and so gets the pillow and gets the keys to open the door and gets her scroll- it changes nothing. She still can't even find Crescent Rose.

It's a ghost town after dark, big and scary and she's probably the only living thing (that isn't a Grimm) in miles. The train's already left, and with it the bad guys and Jaune and her only real chance to make a difference in this mess. She could still run after them, technically. It wouldn't matter. Her semblance would run out, they've too much of a head start, and if she ran into a Grimm it would be over. It's too late to have a chance, even if it's not too late to try, and she finally gets the fatalism that comes with that distinction.

Instead of chasing she tries to call… anyone, once she manages to find reception. Yang can't pick up, her scroll is dead. Her team is no better. Not even Uncle Crow picks up she tries him- and the entire Signal Academy in Vale is unavailable as well. The emergency lines are so busy they're blocked, and the one time she does get through the operator hangs up on her after telling her that if she's not missing a limb in Vale then she isn't more important than the hundreds, thousands, who are. Ultimately she does get through to Father, who tells her to find somewhere safe and sit tight until he can get someone to pick her up. And, for the love of Oum, to not go out where Grimm might find her.

She's surrounded by a darkness filled with beasts and worse monsters. She has no weapon to give her strength or a semblance of bravery. She has no friends at her side to help her. And even it's not all her fault, it's at least a consequence of her own action.

(She thinks she knows how Jaune felt. She's sorry she yelled at him, even if she wasn't wrong, because now she knows what it's like to make the wrong choice too. It not just one wrong choice- it's how one wrong choice that didn't even seem wrong at the time with consequences you couldn't foresee can lead you to finding yourself in an even worse position with worse choices and no way out.)

The safest place- the place with the strongest walls and the strongest doors and the only bed she's found- is the makeshift jail cell. It's chilly, she has nothing for warmth but a combat miniskirt and her own cloak, nothing to sleep on a pillow, but at least it's safe. She'll survive. Beaten, defeated, and yet knowing that she has it better than countless people in Vale thanks to Jaune, she lies down.

Ruby Rose will never see Jaune Arc again in this lifetime- never to reconcile, never to help him, never to make that weapon at Signal. The next time she sees… _him_ , two years later, it won't be the Jaune she knew and it won't be the friend she carelessly threw away. She knows this in her soul, just as she knows it could have been otherwise if she, and not just he, had made the right choice.

Ruby wishes she could take that choice back, even though she knows it's too late. There's no one alive in all of Remnant, not even Jaune, who could give her that chance again.

[ _When you wake up again, it will all be over. Everything won't be alright- I won't be here- but at least you'll be alive. Promise._ ]

(Arcs never went back on their word. They died first.)

Left behind in the darkness, alone and weak and mourning a friend forever lost, Ruby cries herself to sleep.

/

* * *

/

theres a place where we'll stand outnumbered  
where the wolves and the soul-less will rise  
in the time of our final moments  
every dream dies

theres a place where our shields will lay shattered  
and the fear's all that's left in our hearts  
strength and our courage have run out  
we fall apart

when we lose our faith  
and forsake our friends  
when the moon is gone  
and we reach our end

/

* * *

/

 _End Underworld_

/

* * *

/

Author Notes:

Welp. At least Ruby's still alive? For now?

With that pleasant thought, here's something even more pleasant: 'A Common Criminal or Something' will be going on a one-week hiatus.

Something IRL came up that will be dominating my week, it involves a very old relative and I'll leave it at that, and this is a good (ha) a point as any for a pause. 'Househusband Macho' should still be published on schedule- I'm arranging with a friend to help it keep it's release schedule to finish on Father's day- but I want to be here to watch the results for this.

 **Crossing Styx** will begin on 22 June. Hopefully I don't lose too many of you for a lack of hope. Until then- please, take the chance to re-read the story and drop me a review with your reflections on the story to date.


	29. Undefined

**?**

* * *

Disclaimer: I still don't own RWBY.

* * *

 _/_

 _"If patience is worth anything, it must endure to the end of time. And a living faith will last in the midst of the blackest storm."_  
―Mahatma Gandhi _  
_

 _/_

* * *

/

 ** _[Ruby.]_**

(She's not sure if this is real or all just a dream. She wants it to be just a dream. Please let it be just a dream. Her heart won't be able to take it if it isn't.)

 ** _[Ruby Rose.]_**

(She doesn't want it to be real. Doesn't want to wake up. Wants to sleep as long as humanly possible, and then some. The longer she's asleep, the longer it is until she wakes up again, the longer things won't be irrevocably not-alright.)

 ** _[Even if it hurts to see, you must not turn away now.]_**

(The voice is annoying. Why can't it let her sleep? Why can't it let her put off the waking nightmare a little while longer?)

 ** _[Do not be afraid, Ruby Rose.]_**

There's a light in the cell, a glowing figure of aura on the other side of the bars, watching her from beside the table. The aura is bright- as bright as any she's seen before- but somehow not really there. Intangible enough that she can make out blonde hair, but otherwise the light is too bright to make out. The entire cell falls into white light or absolute black, almost nothing in between, and the only color to stand out besides the blond hair is the red she wears

"Jaune?" Ruby asks, trying to make out if it's him. He's the only blonde she knows who knows where she is- the only one who would care- but she can't believe that it's him. Can't believe he'd come back.

 ** _[I need your help.]_**

"Jaune? Jaune! I'm sorry! I didn't mean to!" Ruby apologizes from the bottom of her heart. "I wanted to help! Want to help! Really!"

She wants to take it back- to take it all back all the way- to wind back the clock to fix what was wrong with the world and let them meet like they were supposed to. She'd give up everything she owned to make things right. She'd tackle any challenge to fix things. Brave any danger. To have a chance to live that better life, she'd do-

 ** _[Anything?]_**

Ruby halts as the word that would complete her thought catches in her throat instead. She considers it- would she do anything just to have a chance? To fight, to live, to risk dying for those who need it, certainly. But would she lie, or cheat, or steal or smuggle or threaten or hurt people to get what she wanted? Would she do all that and more, just so that someone else could live?

Is that what Jaune meant to her? To throw away every valued she valued, to do things she'd sworn never to do, for a boy she barely knew?

"No," Ruby admitted, honest but fighting off a touch of shame none the less.

Absolute conviction was supposed to be admirable- heroes were supposed to be willing to do whatever it took to save the day and do the right thing. But limitless will wasn't the same as unlimited willingness. Sometimes you can't save what's important if you do it the wrong way. Sometimes the compromise itself compromised what you were trying to save.

As much as it hurt to admit, as much as she looked down and away in shame, Ruby Rose wouldn't do anything to save Jaune Arc.

 ** _[Would you keep a promise?]_**

Ruby looks back into the light. It doesn't seem disappointed with her- if anything, it seems pleased. But it makes no sense.

"I… don't know if I can," Ruby confessed. "You- Jaune- you're already gone." She looked around, at the black-and-white cell where the only color was blond hair and her own dash of red. "I mean, this is a dream, right? None of this is real. You're not real. You're just a ghost. No matter what I say, in the end I'll wake up and-"

[ _When you wake up again, it will all be over. Everything won't be alright- I won't be here- but at least you'll be alive. Promise._ ]

"Jaune will be gone," she sadly admitted. "Any promise I give to make things right will be broken as soon I wake up."

 ** _[Only the Word of an Arc can be made unbreakable.]_**

"That's what I mean," Ruby said. "Jaune's going to be right again. He said it was going to happen, and it did. He said he'd stay in the alley, and I bet he did as long as he could, but the world didn't care and the world took him anyway so it didn't matter. He didn't think I'd follow, and I didn't. And as soon as I wake up-" she looked downcast. Jaune, fatalistic and cynical and not believing she'd take the chance even if he tried to offer it, would be proven right once again.

"It's too late," Ruby mourned.

 ** _[Only the Word of an Arc can be made unbreakable.]_**

"Didn't you hear me?" Ruby asked, dispirited by the wrongness of it all. "No one alive can change things now!"

 ** _[Even by death itself.]_**

The light flared bright, brighter if it were possible- more than white, _gold_ sang in her heart and lit hope in her mind- and through it she was barely able to glance through the yellow light and see-

Figures. The blonde from before, but now she could see it wasn't really Jaune, but someone just as blonde haired with blue eyed but unmistakably feminine, with a sword and a sheath at her side. There was another blonde beside her, this one male and shirtless and with a tail at his waist, but with a face full of light. On the other side there is another man, big and dark haired, the face between his sideburns also filled with light, and light pouring out of a patchwork of scars across his body.

There's more than just the three- watchers, witnesses, more blondes and blue eyes like the first and some that are not. Maybe there's a hundred of them watching. Maybe there's just the eight blondes standing behind the first that she can pick out. Every single one of them has the same sword and sheath on them, an extension of their souls that they all share. Whatever she doesn't see, it's because she's too enthralled by what she can see.

 ** _[We cannot promise you success. But we can give you another chance to make things right. If you would do the same for us.]_**

The first ghost, the one she thought was Jaune but wasn't, stepped forward and through the cell bars as if they weren't even there. As she does, she unsheathes the sword and the scabbard transforms into a shield, marked by the twin-crescent moon she's only seen once before. The simple blade shines golden, but she recognizes what she's only seen in a weapon magazine on a fateful night.

 _Crocea Mors._

Ruby stumbles backwards at the sight of the Yellow Death approaching, falling and landing on the bed behind her. Crescent Rose comes to her hand as if summoned- it's impossible, her weapon was taken away and lost and she hadn't found it even though she'd tried, but none the less the extension of her soul is in her hands. Black and red power guards her heart, defiant and ready to protect her from any aggression.

The ghost doesn't leap in an attempt to finish her off. Instead it kneels before her, like a knight swearing an oath. The ghost, blonde like Jaune and blue eyed like Jaune but oh-so-feminine, extends her shield arm and gently cups her cheek like Jaune might have. She looks Ruby straight in the eye even as the sword hovers pointed at her chest on the other side of Crescent Rose.

 ** _[If I could give you one more chance, would you take up my promise?]_**

Rose Gray eyes meet Arc Blue, no red glass between them, and in a flash Ruby understands.

Understands that dying before you broke your word meant leaving promises unfulfilled.

Understands that sometimes you couldn't keep a promise on your own, and needed someone's help to fulfill it for you.

Understands that while sometimes it really is too late, sometimes it never is because some promises don't come with time limits.

Understands that some promises can still be kept even, needed to be kept especially, from beyond the grave.

[ _"I'll stay here," Jaune Arc promised the Reaper above him_.]

(Never actually promising for how long or against what odds, only that he'd choose to, and so no matter the outcome and no matter who had taken him away, Jaune Arc hadn't needed to die in any sense because he hadn't gone back on his word so long as he'd tried.)

[ _When you wake up again, it will all be over. Everything won't be alright- I won't be here- but at least you'll be alive. Promise._ ]

(A promise made, among other things, on the assumption that she **_would_** wake up again. That waking was as natural as living and breathing. But if she didn't- if she never did those things again- then the promise would never be fulfilled, the fate of those words never sealed. There'd still be time to change things so that it wouldn't all be over, things could be alright, Jaune would be there, even if she-)

She wouldn't do anything for Jaune Arc, wouldn't stoop to a life of crime or worse just to keep a boy she barely knows safe (and in that he is better than her), but that doesn't mean she wouldn't do anything at all. What she would do to save anyone who needed it is still impressive enough. Fighting, living, even risking death.

(This isn't a risk, not just a chance, this is certainly the Yellow Death, but it's not just anyone, not just her, who is at stake.)

Ruby Rose understands, gathers her courage and resolve, and nods.

"I will," Ruby bravely promises, and drops her guard with Crescent Rose.

 ** _[Then I give you my Arc Word: it is not too late to save Jaune. So long as he lives, you will always have a chance to save him.]_**

Crocea Mors, as much Jaune Arc's Weapon as anyone else's, slides forward and pierces her heart without resistance.

(It hurts, it hurts, it feels like fire but tingling and light and all in one as it enters her. The extension of Jaune Arc's soul enters her heart, a soul that would never have imposed this on her if he'd had any choice, it tries to comfort her and take the pain away even as he's the one hurting her heart once again. From within her she can almost hear him ask. Why, Ruby? Why?)

[ _There's nothing right about having to suffer or die in order to prove yourself a good person._ ]

(But sometimes good people have to die or suffer in order to bring about what is right.)

Ruby Rose wouldn't do anything to keep Jaune Arc safe, but what she would do to save him was simply amazing. She was willing to die for that chance, and so she does. In a sense.

Crocea Mors isn't withdrawn- it plunges ever deeper as blade then pommel then hilt enter her heart but do not come through her back. When it is gone- when all that's left is the gentle hands of the ghost on her breast- there's no blood, only a crack of light above her heart where it had entered. Her own aura pours forth through that light, flooding the room as everything seems to shudder and crack apart. The prison bars disappear. The room fades into white. The ghosts disappear one by one, until it's only Ruby and the ghost who stabbed her, the blond girl with blue eyes who gives her a grateful smile, and then only her and Crescent Rose and the sense of Crocea Mors inside her, and then only her. And then there is only light.

Ruby dies, in a sense. In a very real and literal sense. But only in that sense, and only for a moment, not even a heartbeat, because the moment she does the World stops.

Time freezes.

It looses all semblance and meaning. It makes no sense, tied into a paradox, and twisted into knots as the impossible occurs despite not being possible. A Semblance of the World, a fundamental rule underpinning the existence of this Remnant, has been violated. There is no crime that can compare.

 ** _[Only the Word of an Arc can be made unbreakable, even by death itself.]_**

[ _When you wake up again, it will all be over. Everything won't be alright- I won't be here- but at least you'll be alive. Promise._ ]

He'd promised she'd still be alive when she woke up, and yet here she was, dead, and at the point of his own Weapon no less. An Arc Word, broken by its own soul? It shouldn't be possible- it should be outright inconceivable. It's a paradox, and nothing less.

Well, the World has its way of resolving paradoxes caused by Word-breaking Arcs. There's a reason Crocea Mors means Yellow Death: not for the damage dealt by blonde-haired wielders, but for the fate of every Arc who has gone back on the word after wielding it. It gathers its energies, reaches out to mete out the only appropriate punishment, to find him and strike him down moments ago before the crime could be committed, and when it finds Jaune Arc it-

It doesn't. It _can't_. There's already no Jaune Arc to be found. No one who claims the name or shares extension of soul that is Crocea Mors and so is bound by the semblance of that shared family soul, the Yellow Death's promise to the World that Arcs would die before they went back on their Word. Crocea Mors, the unbreakable promise-shield and oath-keeping blade, a compact with the world and a semblance belonging to no one person but shared by every Arc through the collective extensions of their souls, has no master. Not even the World can find him. There are echoes, the ghost of a ghost, but nothing living that could be recognized as 'Jaune Arc.' No Arc that can be killed for going back on their word, because the Arcs are already dead, and yet Jaune Arc didn't die either. Not yet, not really, and yet gone all the same.

This… makes no sense. Just think it through. The extension of Jaune Arc's soul killed Ruby Rose, whose survival was guaranteed by Jaune Arc's Word. An Arc broke an Arc Word but there is no Arc alive but Jaune Arc who could do it, not even a Jaune who would never do such a thing and still be just Jaune and besides Jaune's Weapon is a shameful bloody cleaver that doesn't deserve a name, but _Jaune Arc_ made that promise and some Arc broke it with the extension of his Arc soul but the only Arcs who would go back on their word are already dead and if Arcs die before they go back on their word then there should be no way this could be possible because they **_must_** die before they go back on their word because that is the Word that forged Crocea Mors in long forgotten times when the World was young and such promises were the foundation of Remnant and so they couldn't be alive to kill Ruby which would mean she couldn't be dead because that would break Jaune Arc's Word but Jaune Arc is gone so she can't still save him and also can't be killed by him which would kill him as a precondition for not going back on his word and that means she could not die which opens up a whole other can of worms because if she is supposed to be alive but Jaune is gone then _that_ absence breaks _another_ Arc Word because she _promised_ that he wouldn't be alone in the end but without Ruby he really would be and she also said he'd wake up and still be him on the inside but if Jaune Arc's soul killed Ruby then he wouldn't even be just Jaune anymore and besides if she were still present wouldn't she have made herself known to him and if Jaune Arc is gone without dying then that part is wrong as well and she must die for that and wait she already did the World has already killed her before she could break an Arc Word but if it did then she couldn't be responsible for stabbing Ruby Rose and doing just that which would no doubt destroy what was left of Jaune Arc because that would be impossible because she made an Arc Word that he would still be there inside and she died before she could go back on that that so that she could keep the part about still watching over him so she couldn't break her Word now because to do that she'd have to be given life somehow in order to kill Ruby Rose after promising that it wasn't too late to save Jaune Arc which would make it impossible to save Jaune Arc but killing Ruby Rose with the extension of Jaune Arc's soul when Jaune Arc's soul can no longer be found and so can't kill her and so can't be killed at the same time would also be going back on her Word and as an Arc because if Jaune Arc can't be found and Ruby can't choose to save him and never can again because she killed Ruby Rose she must die before going back on her Arc Word which would break an Arc Word which is unbreakable which would break another unbreakable Arc Word but the World can't do because Arc Words are unbreakable even by death that's why Arcs die first so that they can't do such things but the World it can't do that right now because Jaune Arc is lost and it can't kill Ruby Rose for the bit of Jaune Arc's soul inside because she died before she could make Arc Words with the extension of Jaune Arc's inside her so the World has no claim on her soul and it would be impossible to kill her or him or the other her or the collective extension of the Arc family as a whole or any of them it's impossible for the ones responsible for this to be punished and impossible for the ones to be punished to be responsible for this because Arcs die before going back on their word and the dead can't go back on their word or be killed for doing so since… they're all… she is…

…already…

…dead. And while Arcs die before going back on their world, dead Arcs **_can not_** go back on their word, or be killed for doing so.

Which makes this… **_impossible_**. It's a paradox, a time trap, a loophole in the shape of a Gordian knot.

This just will not do.

The World cuts the Gordian knot in the most practical way possible, resolves the paradox in the easiest way available, and simply goes back to when things made some semblance of sense.

Ruby Rose gasps as life returns to her.

Everything begins goes back to how it should have been, or at least how it was before it couldn't have been. If the Creator has been playing a prank with the universe, He has just been told to put it all back together just as he found it and to be more serious this time. Time rewinds- maybe two days, maybe a week, or maybe hours or minutes but ultimately just long enough.

The Grimm Night rises as the sunset reverses itself. The train comes back, and with it all the monsters and men and Jaune that had followed it. The pillow throws itself from the wall to her bars and back to Jaune's hands and back onto the table. The World pauses, as if taking a deep breath, and prepares to begin again.

Properly, this time.

/

* * *

/

(She's not sure if this is real or all just a dream. She hopes it is neither- that she can wake up without waking, that this can be real without having happened. Hopes that she came make something else real instead. She wants to make the right choice, for herself and for Jaune, even if she's just a little girl armed with nothing but the best intentions and a fantastic dream she'll never clearly remember.)

 ** _[Have faith in yourself, Ruby Rose. You are the last true chance.]_**

/

* * *

/

i may fall  
but not like this-it won't be by your hand  
i may fall  
not this place, not today  
i may fall  
bring it all-it's not enough to take me down  
i may fall

/

* * *

/

 _End Divide per Ciphra  
_

/

* * *

/

Author Notes:

...


	30. Underworld Terminus

Underworld Terminus

Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY.

* * *

/

 _"Now is the beginning of another cycle of mortal generation where birth is the beacon of death. No divinity shall cast lots for you, but you shall choose your own deity. Let him to whom falls the first lot first select a life to which he shall cleave of necessity. But Virtue has no master over her, and each shall have more or less of her as he honors her or does her despite. The blame is his who chooses: God is blameless."_

-Plato, _Republic_ 10.617d

/

* * *

/

Jaune stepped out. Ruby stared spitefully at the present he left behind, wanting to kick it, to throw it away, to reject it as thoroughly as he'd rejected her offer of help.

She wanted to-

 ** _[Don't.]_**

-but didn't. She couldn't remember a single reason why not, but she couldn't think of one good reason to do so either. Couldn't think of any good reason to refuse someone's act of kindness.

Instead she took the pillow and held it to her chest, heart aching with an unfamiliar pain, and dried her earlier tears (of laughter and sadness and tears born of a friend's disappointment and sorrow and an infinite regret) until she felt something hard slip out onto her lap with a 'klunk' and heard a tinkle even as something hit the floor. She paused, looking down, confused at why a pillow would 'klunk' or tinkle, not comprehending what she saw.

A scroll and a key. Her scroll, and a key to the only locked door for miles.

[ _he tells the guard to leave them and go finish loading the train even as he places a pillow with something in it on the desk on his side of the locked bars_ ]

[ _With a little luck your allies will be looking for you, unlock your cell, and you'll be safe and sound and far enough away from Vale to be stay that way._ ]

[ _"Jaune? Jaune!" she called. "We'll stop you, Jaune! My family? We're heroes! If not me, then my sister and her team! Whatever you have in mind, we'll win and then you'll see! We'll prove it's never too late to do the right thing!"_ ]

[ _"I'll believe that when I see it, but I doubt I will," he ultimately said, even as he picked up the pillow._ ]

[ _"Just go to sleep, Ruby," he told her, tossing the pillow at the bars. "We'll be gone within the hour. When you wake up again, it will all be over. Everything won't be alright- I won't be here- but at least you'll be alive. Promise."_ ]

[ _He left the door open behind him, not even bothering to lock it from the outside._ ]

By any measure she's still in a bad situation. She's been captured by the enemy, has no idea where her weapon is, has no idea where her sister or uncle or anyone else could even receive a scroll call, and she'd have no chance in a fight if she's caught outside looking for reception by the White Fang still around, or even just Jaune. She'd be captured at best, and there'd be no more chances this time. She should make the choice Jaune wanted for her, rather than the chance he offered- she should stay here, safe in her cell, wait for the train to leave before breaking herself out. Then she could call the authorities in Vale, give them a warning. No one would ever know that she dragged her feet. She's just one person, one little girl without even a weapon worthy of her, let alone a hero- she doesn't have a chance in stopping the Grimm Night to come. Not alone.

A smile slowly blossoms on Ruby Rose's face none the less.

She has no chance in a fight, but she can still choose to try to do the right thing anyway. And she's not alone- not really. She has her Uncle and her Sister and her Sister's friends even if she doesn't really know them, but most of all she has Jaune Arc helping her as well. And if she has Jaune, then Jaune has her and all her family and their friends in return, because friends share their families as well as themselves and the best families (and hers is the best alive) will help the friends of family. Even if he doesn't believe it yet.

When you're alone in the world, when it's just you against an entire underworld, you have no chance. But if you have two, just one more person willing to choose to stand by you, then you only have to take on half of the world. And if you have four, a quarter. And if somehow, someway, you can get to eight souls banding together- then you have a chance. Not a guarantee of survival, not a promise of victory against overwhelming odds, but a chance. And chances are worth taking not because of what they guarantee, but because of what they could offer if you dare try.

Jaune isn't as alone down here as he seems to think he is, and something as simple as that changes… everything.

"I'll show you, Jaune," Ruby promises with a smile, and makes the right choice.

(It's time to prove Jaune wrong, and to save Jaune Arc from himself.)

* * *

/

 ** _[Remember the words, all of the words, for these are your Words and this is the song of Promise you share.]_**

/

* * *

/

there's a day when all hearts will be broken  
when a shadow will cast out the light  
and our eyes cry a million tears  
help wont arrive

there's a day when all courage collapses  
and our friends turn and leave us behind  
creatures of darkness will triumph  
the sun won't rise

when we've lost all hope  
and succumb to fear  
as the skies rain blood  
and the end draws near

i may fall  
but not like this-it won't be by your hand  
i may fall  
not this place, not today  
i may fall  
bring it all-it's not enough to take me down  
i may fall

there's a place where we'll stand outnumbered  
where the wolves and the soul-less will rise  
in the time of our final moments  
every dream dies

there's a place where our shields will lay shattered  
and the fear's all that's left in our hearts  
strength and our courage have run out  
we fall apart

when we lose our faith  
and forsake our friends  
when the moon is gone  
and we reach our end

I may fall

/

* * *

/

I _may_ fall

(It's a possibility, not a guarantee.)

 ** _[We cannot promise you success.]_**

Just one stumble is all it would take to fall. She's already failed once. They both have.

 ** _[But we can give you another chance to make things right.]_**

(As long as it's not too late, she'll try anyway.)

She has a train to catch.

/

* * *

/

 _End Underworld Terminus_

/

* * *

/

Author Note:

As previously promised: Crossing Styx begins tomorrow.

Not previously promised: no more time paradoxes and less less mind-screwing surrealism.

Now, about that explanation I owe you...

This is the end to Underworld that ended up happening. Yes, you can read the story straight from 'Underworld 11' and skip to 'Underworld Terminus' and pretend that the rest didn't happen. In fact, if you go back you'll find a special author note as of today indicating that. You can imagine that this is just the route in which Ruby doesn't throw the pillow away. If you want to believe that the previous two chapters were just a trollish joke while I was away at a wedding, a tragic downer cliffhanger before I left and then a retcon to carry on after I returned... well, that's not entirely inaccurate. The responses have been great.

The segment name, 'Divide per Ciphra,' is latin for 'Divide by Zero.' Division by zero is undefined. It's intended to reflect the idea and the outcome of the paradox: the mathematical solution for dividing by zero is that you don't. You simply can't. Instead of working through it you backtrack and correct the mistake that lead to the illegal operation, no matter how far down the rabbit hole you've gone.

But Divide per Ciphra wasn't 'just a trollish joke'- it was deep dive into the metaphysics that have been underpining this story from the start. Themes and metaphors that people have been taken figuratively when they were actual literal, the 'deep magic' of the story. There's foreshadowing and reach-back and plot-relevant points that apply going forward. There's reasons for them, reasons for what was said, and things they do for the story. Hit or miss? Certainly. Controversial to serious readers? I expect so- just as I expected controversy with killing Sun and catching Blake and having Ruby present in the first place and doing short segments per update. I fully expect people to leave in their final reviews 'I liked everything but that crazy time warp. It just didn't fit, and I'll pretend I just got suckered.' And I'm cool with that. Deep Magic is tricky to write with if it's not a major focus, and not everyone would like it even if it were.

If you enjoyed or appreciated 'Underworld Finale' and 'Divide per Ciphra,' then please: take them at face value, as best you can wrap your head around them. Ruby threw the pillow away, fell asleep after the Breach, and was killed in a way that sparked a time paradox that was equivalent to dividing by zero. Your literary allusion should be the Deep and Deeper Magics of Narnia in The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. Arcs dying before they break their word is Deep Magic. What happens if Arcs can't die before breaking their word is Deeper Magic.

If you didn't- well, thank you for trying and sharing your thoughts. Your literary allusion should be Chapter 25 (and 11) of inkbender's amazing Jaune-centric fic 'Zodiac.' Plot-relevant points, not necessarily plot-integral. Only I did it in a fraction of the time with a fraction of the words, and not nearly as well. For the rest of the story, the metaphysics going forward is... much more restrained, and generally more subtle. I have a feeling you'll still enjoy what's to come, and hope you judge it on its own merits.


	31. Crossing Styx 1

**Crossing Styx**

Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY.

/

* * *

/

 _FEAR has two meanings._

 _Forget Everything And Run._

 _Face Everything And Rise._

 _The choice is yours._

-Unknown

/

* * *

/

Jaune doesn't bother feeling guilty or lamenting fate or cursing himself for his moment of weakness as he makes his way to the train. He knows better. Knows who to blame.

Damn Arc. If Ruby gets hurt because of him- gets involved because of them- he'll… he doesn't know how, but he'll _kill_ that son of a bitch. _(Sorry Mother.)_

He hadn't planned that, he swears- Ruby wasn't supposed to get involved, she was supposed to stay away, to stay _safe._ He'd only intended to activate a distress beacon and leave Ruby's scroll on the table as he left, to leave the key so that whoever investigated could open the door more easily. He'd hid them inside the pillow to get them past the guards, sure, but he hadn't intended to give her the means to escape. Hadn't meant to lose his common sense, to lose control of himself, to his treacherous better nature.

 _(Arcs might die before they break their word, but just Jaune isn't an Arc. He's too much of a survivor to kill himself over that, and as long as Ruby's alive, at least a part of him will still be here. Besides, maybe she won't notice it. Maybe she'll be smart and stay put, Jaune Arc suggests from behind the red glass.)_

Jaune Arc is either a horrible liar or a foolish optimist. Probably both. Jaune isn't so stupid. Which is why Jaune had slammed the red glasses down onto his face after he left the room, hard enough to hurt, hard enough that common sense prevails and only a whisper of conscience is left to distract him as he hurries to the train where the White Fang are finishing loading the dust and bombs. No one's raising any alarms about escaped prisoners- no little red hoods are making mad dashes towards the train.

As much as he hates to do this, he'll have to trust Ruby to stay out of trouble on her own without him. The next hour or so is going to be the most important in his life, and he can't afford any doubts or distractions if they're going to pull this off. His life, his existence, as a common criminal is committed to this.

"We need to leave, now," he greets gruffly, lifting himself onto the back of the train beside Roman. The crime boss, bless his twisted soul, doesn't even question- he yells at the White Fang to move out, now.

"Trouble?" Roman asks, nodding to where Red was held.

"Going to be," Jaune bets. "She's not alone- she has family, and her family has friends. Huntress friends," he says, thinking of the team that's been causing them no small amount of heart ache. The Blonde Bombshell. The Schnee. The Invincible Amazon.

"And she told you this?" Roman asked, disbelieving. "What sort of idiot exposes their allies without being tortured?"

"The simple sort," Jaune supplied. "Same kind that gives their name at a burglary. I believe her," he added. He doesn't enter the caboose until the train is already moving faster than a run, and he still feels a paranoid urge to try and look under the train cars to see if anyone is trying to cling on from underneath. It would be stupid, reckless, incredibly dangerous, and all too plausible.

He doesn't. He doesn't even order one of the White Fang soldiers to look. He's not sure what he's afraid of more: being wrong, or being right.

[ _We'll stop you, Jaune! My family? We're heroes! If not me, then my sister and her team! Whatever you have in mind, we'll win and then you'll see!_ ]

"Huntresses, huh?" Roman says, leading him towards the front of the train.

"Good ones too," Jaune adds, thinking of the Blonde Bombshell and that night at the Club that first got him noticed. "Think we can take them?" Their chances would be better if they had Mercury and Emerald on their side, but Cinder's team is already within Beacon.

He's supposed to join them in a few weeks, he remembers- rounding out Team MEJC, Team Majesty, the next chapter planned by Cinder in his path to power. He's supposed to listen to Neo after that as well, being Roman's hidden ace up the sleeve for when things go wrong right. And after that he'll probably get to working with his friends in the White Fang again as well, helping shepherd in their revolution for a brave new world. A promising future for Jaune lays right down these tracks.

Roman isn't concerned. "We have the White Fang and actual Paladins," he said. "We even have myself and Neo, if it comes to that. We can hold them off," he said.

"I'll go to the front, then, and make sure there are no issues," Jaune says, stepping forward faster.

"You think they'll try to attack the front first?" Roman asked, matching his pace. Maybe if they ran on the roofs, or somehow got ahead on the tracks. "Or do you just not trust our lovely animal friends?" he asked.

"I don't want to take any chances relying on others for what I should do myself," Jaune says, and his steps turn into a jog. "Stay in touch," he says, fingering his earbud, and leaves Roman behind.

/

* * *

/

Author Notes:

I fully encourage people to feel optimistic and hopeful. After all, what's the worst that could happen, considering the story to date?

It's not like I'd ever give you false expectations to encourage and manipulate your emotions for maximum impact...

Or throw in seeds of doubt to make you question yourself and increase your sense of dramatic tension...


	32. Crossing Styx 2

**Crossing Styx**

Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY.

/

* * *

/

 _FEAR has two meanings._

 _Forget Everything And Run._

 _Face Everything And Rise._

 _The choice is yours._

-Unknown

/

* * *

/

Roman smiles at the initiative as he watches his protégé go. That boy is going to be a good criminal one day, if he wasn't already.

"Guess I'll guard the car," Roman said, taking the chance to sit down and enjoy a much deserved smoke as he basked in pride of his eye for talent.

Anyone that kept him from dealing with the beasts would have been good by him, but he'd found a real diamond in the gutter that night. Junior had been a fool to not realize the value what he'd had his hands on- an Arc, an honest to Oum descendant of a line of proven Hunters, being used as two-bit bouncer. And then thrown out!

There were black-market slavers and private 'collectors' out there who'd shell out serious lien for the novelty value alone. How many clients with more money than morals would snap up a deal starting with 'Last of Line of Heroes, Pretty, Blonde, Virgin, prime breeding age, good mouth, no friends or family to try and follow'? Depressingly many, that's what- even, or especially, if you added 'Male' to that list. There were twisted people out there with weird ideas about eugenics, and people who gave a damn about bloodlines and family semblances and so on. If he were the kind of criminal to sell flesh (which he is not- Roman has style and _standards_ , thank you very much, and there are corners of the criminal underworld that curl even his and Neo's toes), he could have gotten rid of the kid and made a profit long ago.

But that wouldn't have been a fraction as satisfying or entertaining as making him into a criminal was proving. To take someone who could have been a no-good do-gooder, and to twist just so… to watch them change and do the things they'd once believed they never would and turn away from what they would have been. Roman hadn't planned that for Jaune- hadn't been pulling the strings or manipulating all the events or anything like that- but he was able to appreciate it, to relish in it like an aloof observer.

Giving tasks, giving goals and letting the boy try to figure out how to least compromise his morals to get it done, giving that illusion that he was choosing a good thing by picking between two evils in pursuit of another evil… and then watching the boy become better and better at it, to the point that he _thanks_ his tormentors for the opportunity and asks for more and better tricks to pull off. Reveling in that moment when he _asks_ to be taught how to be bad, and is willing to pay tribute for the privilege of learning how to do wrong right.

The fact that Roman hadn't even had to do anything special to make it happen? That it had happened practically on its own, the chance of a criminal lifetime practically falling right into his lap? It was enough to make a villain want to cackle manically, or at least laugh at the absurdity of the world. There's something deliciously evil about watching and rooting on the corruption of an innocent, but only the truly twisted could appreciate it.

Honestly, the only thing that could have made it better would have been if the boy still had his family weapon. The ancient blade of an ancient line of heroes- that was more than an heirloom, that was a relic. An artifact of the forgotten age, of the Age of Heroes, a time before Kingdoms. There was power in such remnants. Power worth stealing.

Perhaps he still could. Perhaps he still would. This was hardly his final job, after all. Once Neo and Jaune broke him out, they'd need another commission. And what better way to commemorate their escape than for their next job to be a priceless piece of history? Something like that would be the perfect way to secure his apprentice's loyalty for some time. Even if he never sold it, stealing Crocea Mors could be a… profitable venture.

So much potential, in the form of one little boy with nowhere else to go and no one else to turn to. It was like taking candy from an abandoned baby, and then stealing the baby itself for good measure. Who would look for a kid as pathetic and alone as Jaune? Who would even want to?

There's a telltale thud from a car or two ahead as something landed on the train from above, snapping him from his musings.

"Bingo," Roman said with a grin, and prepared to receive his guests.

/

* * *

/

 _(In another time, in the same place, this never happened. In that time, Jaune really was as alone as he thought he was. And that ruined… everything.)_

/

* * *

/

Author Notes:

Good news, everyone. For once, an author note that isn't (intended) to depress you! This fic now has fanart!

The talented KegiSpringfield has drawn a charmingly bloody picture of the story. Once I can crop it down to a reasonable size and figure out how, I'll even try to use it as the story image: behold, Jaune in the goon suit! (Ignore the bloody consequences overshadowing him).

Thanks Kegi! Now all this fic needs is its own TVTropes fanfic rec, or even better, it's own page, and I'll know I've made it.

Full image can be found at deviant art. Warning: it's under the bloody 'mature' filter. I can't imagine why...

kegispringfield. deviantart art/RWBY-s-Fanfic-s-fanart-A-Common-Criminal-Or-Somet-541496508


	33. Crossing Styx 3

**Crossing Styx**

Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY.

/

* * *

/

 _FEAR has two meanings._

 _Forget Everything And Run._

 _Face Everything And Rise._

 _The choice is yours._

-Unknown

/

* * *

/

"There's three- no, four of them! Four intruders on top!" a voice claimed on the radio, even as another train car detonated behind them, unleashing Grimm into the tunnels.

Four? Four was a full team from Beacon. But a team out here would have an escort, a teacher of some sort. That would mean someone was missing from this team that kept haunting them- [the ghost of Black Cat watches with yellow eyes as the White Fang parts before him uneasily, waiting for them to pass before continuing to grab guns and move up top]- which would be just as they expected, if Cinder's intel was good. But it doesn't feel right to Jaune.

[ _"Yang's going to be a hero," Red said, before looking more excited. "Ooh, but I am too! I'm a student at Signal, and I'm training to go to be a Huntress too! It's always been a dream of mine and-"_ ]

"Keep an eye out for a Reaper," Jaune barks into the mike. "And be careful of the scythe- don't try to take it out, just keep it at a distance."

"Understood!" they claim, even as gunfire starts from overhead. The sound of Atlean Paladins unloading is unmistakable.

"Two of them just came down low," Roman warns on the net. "Neo's engaging Blonde Bombshell, and I'm dealing with Ice Queen in the middle car." There's a muffled 'hey!' in the distance.

By this point he's almost at the lead car, only to find two dozen White Fang soldiers waiting. They must be the last-ditch reserve.

"The Schnee is here?" Jaune asks, and in a heartbeat the room goes silent. There's an almost palpable bloodlust from the White Fang he's working his way through, especially a familiar Lieutenant.

"Don't get distracted," Roman warns, even as he fails to follow his own advice. A cry of pain comes across the mike, and Jaune turns around in midstep.

"Roman, are you alright?" he demands, clear enough for everyone to hear. "She too much for you?"

"Not… a problem…" Roman claims, but his pain is audible. "Just… too much… damn dust."

Jaune looks at the lieutenant and assembled White Fang soldiers. They look back. He gives a nod to behind him. "Who wants to help him take down a Schnee?" he asks.

Nearly half of them leap forward. The Lieutenant has to struggle to hold back the rest, and himself, from assisting. He doesn't look happy, but whatever he's about to say to Jaune is lost in an explosion from above.

"Paladin down!" someone cries on the net. "The damn corgie took down a Paladin!"

Nothing about Jaune's confusion is faked. "A… corgie? What, a dog-faunus?" he asks.

"No, a damn corgi!" one of the remaining pilots says. "Some reaper with a scythe just punted the damn thing and- shit, there's the scythe! Shoot it! Shoot it! Shoot it down-" the radio ended with a scream.

"Get up there and help them out," Jaune orders the remaining White Fang. "Long range only- just put enough dust down range to keep them back."

The Lieutenant doesn't appreciate having his authority usurped, or being directed like a dog. "Belay that," he snarles. "We'll have a better chance beating them if we mass our forces here."

Jaune looks at him from behind the red glass as if he's an idiot. "We don't need to beat them in a fight, just keep them out of the engine room long enough. Which will be easier with the White Fang up there, rather than defending down here. What, do you think they're going to attack from inside the engine?" he asked.

The Lieutenant doesn't like it, but nods and lets more of the soldiers leave. "Fine," he grudgingly accepts. He and his remaining few hold the door like a pack of beasts, ready to kill anyone who tries to enter their den.

Jaune waits amongst the teeth of the White Fang, and feels no fear.

/

* * *

/

 _(In another time, but this same place, this was the point Jaune Arc made one last desperate try for control. He failed. Just Jaune was stronger, tougher, trained. Not only was he the one with blood on his hands, but he wanted it more too- wanted to live as a common criminal more than Jaune Arc ever wanted to die a martyr for or with Ruby Rose.)_

/

* * *

/

Author Notes:

Edit: Minor change to the final (other time) bullet. Realized I had them out of order. The other will return.

If I was a more pretentious writer, I would have made there be nine train cars, each symbolic to a layer of hell, and would have had Jaune have an appropriate encounter in each of them as he went down the line. Fortunately for you, that didn't occur to me until just now.

For anyone who's having trouble getting to the fanart- just google 'KegiSpringfield' and 'Deviantart.' Not only will you find it in her RWBY folder, but she has a number of fanarts for various stories worth checking out.


	34. Crossing Styx 4

**Crossing Styx**

Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY.

/

* * *

/

 _FEAR has two meanings._

 _Forget Everything And Run._

 _Face Everything And Rise._

 _The choice is yours._

-Unknown

/

* * *

/

It wasn't often he waited for a human. It was even rarer that he did so without wanting to strike them down. But this one was different. This one was worth waiting for. This one was worth the patience.

"Time's coming soon," one of his Lieutenants warned. "We got a message they were heading out."

"Tch, they're early," the second lieutenant cursed. "They couldn't get started without a hitch after all, could they?" Had they been able to start in the dead of night, when the only first responders awake would have been those on the graveyard shift...

"We were luckier than we had any right to expect," the first one weighed in. Considering how smoothly the preparations had gone, it was hard to deny.

"Are our forces ready?" Adam asked, speaking for the first time.

"Yes sir," the second lieutenant answered promptly. "They're already in position. When the Breach occurs, they'll be ready to delay the first responders." Brave officers of the law, do-gooders with weapons, anyone brave enough to rush towards the screams and panic rather than away from the Breach- they'd be met with ambushes and death of their own, even before they reached the Grimm. Even the smallest of delays and confusion would magnify the devastation.

"They won't last long against the military. Not against that," the first Lieutenant pointed up, at the Atlean fleet hovering overhead.

"They won't need to. That's what the Paladins are for." And wouldn't that be a surprise for the General and his dogs- to find state of the art hardware in the enemy's hands? How fortunate indeed that no stray cats had wandered away with that little secret…

Which made patience all the more important.

"And our other priority?" he asked.

The lieutenants shared a look, but answered. "We'll be ready," they affirmed. "When Justin John emerges-"

"Just Jaune," Adam corrected without humor.

They shared a look again, but continued. "When he emerges from the Breach, the soldiers know to get him to safety," One affirmed. The benefits of being friends with the White Fang.

Two still had his doubts. "I don't see why you're bothering," he admitted. "Why him? And why not the real criminal, his boss?"

Adam didn't have to answer- they feared him enough they'd do what he said anyway- but he did anyway.

"Torchwick is Cinder's dog," Adam said. "If she wants him to live, she'll ensure it, but he's as bad as the rest. His subordinate, though…"

He considered. It wasn't a sense of approval, an extension of the good rapport the human had made with the White Fang soldiers he had worked with. It wasn't personal gratitude, for being responsible for the capture and closure of a chapter of his life. It wasn't just the take-away from their own, brief conversation.

It was all of those together, and something more. A sense of recognition.

"That one has potential," he said. "To help us in the next phase. To help us build the next world. We'll need humans like him after we're done."

"What makes you think he'll want to help us?" Two asked. "He doesn't care about Faunus."

"Exactly," Adam said. He didn't care- and that was why he was so different from so many. The opposite of hatred wasn't love- it was apathy. That one would fear and deal with them the same as he would any human- and in that, he was an better example of what the future of co-existence could be.

"And you think he'd join us because…?" One wanted to know.

"Because we'll give him a better choice," Adam revealed. "Torchwik will use him for his own ambitions. Cinder will try to convince him that obeying her is in his best interest. We'll make a better offer- a chance to be something more than someone's pawn, to be something better."

"And if he chooses 'no'?" Two asked.

Adam gave something that could nearly be the beginning of a hard smile.

"He won't," Adam said, a darker sort of faith unchallenged. "He might deny it, but deep down there's something slumbering, something that wants to wake up. Men like him don't choose to risk death for a daily profit or a petty title. They want to choose, and if given the chance they'll choose something more."

Something Roman and Cinder faintly grasped, but would never be able to provide. Jaune's eyes were dim and apathetic, but there was potential behind them, one waiting to be rekindled. Whoever could light the spark in Jaune's eyes would have him. Whoever spoke to his soul and electrified him would have all of Jaune Arc.

Red and Black conviction would win in the end. He was sure of it.

/

* * *

/

 _(He was wrong. In another time, in a place not far from here, it wasn't just Jaune who emerged from the Breach. There was someone else, a man who answered to Justin John and who left old names behind. He didn't hate, he didn't care, and he would deal with faunus as he would any human. But his apathy was the worst sort, the opposite of love, the indifference to anyone's suffering, and his eyes would never hold hope for a better world.)_

/

* * *

/

Author Notes:

You know you're in a good part of the story when you can't think of anything non-spoilerly to talk about. Instead I'll throw out some concepts for potential next projects. They all have at least rough plot outlines in my head, from start to finish. Let me know what you think. (Oh, and feel free to review for the main chapter too. You know, if you want.)

A Family Friend or Something: Being born a Schnee meant being born into wealth, power, and isolation. It never occurred to Weiss that you could be born into friendship as well. It's the Arcs who are changed but Weiss Schnee who changes when she has a sworn friend to call her own long before Beacon. (A Weiss development story. A Jaune-Weiss friendship fic of sorts, based on an AU of 'what if Arcs and Schnees were family friends.' Majority of story already written.)

An Epic Bromance Or Something: After Ren has an unsettling dream about Jaune, Nora, and a wedding in which he is not the Best Man, a somewhat confused Ren realizes he needs to not take his friend for granted. Will quiet Ren be able to make Jaune realize what he feels, or will he lose his chance to be Bro of Bros to rugged rivals and the overly-friendly foreign exchange students? (Genre: harem parody, bromantic comedy, with an emphasis on the bro and being the man but no actual nce-nce-nce no matter how much Yang wants.)

A hunter Or Something: Jaune isn't a Hunter, he's a hunter. Shoots game with a bow, runs from Grimm like a coward, that sort of thing. He hasn't had the best of opinions of the 'actual' Hunters he's met either. But when his sister's teammate is lost in the wilderness and only someone who knows the land could have a chance at finding him, he may not be the only one to learn what it means to be a hero in the process. (Genre: Adventure/Survival. Jaune/Ren friendship. Jaune the non-combat specialist, with real-world survivalism themes.)

A Pacifist Or Something: It's not just that Jaune can't fight- he wouldn't if he could. Somehow this is considered admirable. Jaune becomes a human symbol of the Faunus Rights movement, even as Blake and Adam try to protect him from the harsh realities of his own ideals. (Genre: Drama. AU of 'what if Jaune met Blake at a White Fang rally?' No more a romance fic than Common Criminal. Not going to lie- would deal a lot with the fact that pacifists tend to be more idealistic than long-lived. A tale of hope, inspiration, and idealism in a non-ideal world.)

A Lover Boy Or Something (name change likely): You'd have to be pretty simple to take Yang's flirting at face value believe it, but Jaune really can be that simple. He's not the only dumb blonde around, though, considering how long it takes Yang to realize he thinks they're dating. A story of careless words, clumsy hearts, and the maturity that grows from from both loving and being loved. (Genre: Romance and Friendship. Actual genuine gradually developed romance of an uncommon pairing.)


	35. Crossing Styx 5

**Crossing Styx**

Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY.

/

* * *

/

 _FEAR has two meanings._

 _Forget Everything And Run._

 _Face Everything And Rise._

 _The choice is yours._

-Unknown

/

* * *

/

Minutes pass and explosions resound. Time ticks by, closer and closer to running out. Eventually Roman staggers in, beaten and bruised but still conscious.

"Too… much dust," he says again and nearly collapses in heavy breathing. From behind him, the sound of fighting continues. "Trade out," he says, pointing towards his Lieutenant (Jaune).

Jaune looks at the other Lieutenant, and offers a conciliatory smile and a flourish of a bow. "After you," he offers. "I think you want this more than me."

The Lieutenant nods, lifting his massive chainsaw. "Finally, I get to kill a Schnee," he mutters menacingly, even as he and the rest of the White Fang move forward.

Trailing behind him, a few of the White Fang soldier look nervous. "Uh, maybe we should let him get this one," one suggests. "He really hates the Schnees. Probably wouldn't want us getting in his way."

"Yeah! We could, uh, help guard the engine! Right Jaune?" one tries with forced familiarity.

There's no smile for them. Jaune's glare is amplified by the red glasses flashing with the dark glimmer of his aura.

"If you don't get out there, we're going to have a problem," he says while meaningfully fingering his cleaver.

[He's not the only one to see the ghost of Tukson, not this time. The image of the crushed head pales before the butcher's work on the man's body, an image freely circulated on everyone's scroll ever since that day. Everyone swears they still see blood on the cleaver. The White Fang soldiers pale at the sight, and flee to fight Huntresses they fear less than him.]

Even though he saw the trick, even though he saw them flee, Roman doesn't laugh, doesn't even smile as Jaune offers himself as a crutch to replace the man's cane. "Why is it," Roman grunts out, "that you're always the last one to get into the fight?" He chuckles, but he isn't in good cheer.

"You're the one who hired me to be more than just muscle, boss," Jaune reminds. "Just think of it as how part of the plan is still going just as planned- if this had worked out, I was never supposed to fight anyway."

Roman laughs. "Those Huntresses, they're the real deal," he said. "They're going to mop the floor with those mooks. Doubt you would have done much good against them anyway."

"Probably not," Just Jaune agreed. "But just in case… I need to borrow this," Jaune says as he gently lifts the cane, a weapon befitting a unique criminal, out of the hands of the beaten and bruised man.

Roman gives him a curious look. "What are you up to?" he asks.

[ _Red fan-girled. "Weapons are amazing!" she claimed. "They're like an extension of your soul! Someone's weapon says a lot about them. I just had to have the best weapon possible to be the best Hero I could be!"_ ]

"Not going to take any chances in securing the engine room," Just Jaune reassures. "Can't risk letting anyone derail my plan."

He's prepared to fight anyone who gets in his way.

/

* * *

/

 _(In the other time, this was as far as he was able to go. Jaune Arc waited for a chance that never came, and died in a sense when he realized it never would. But this time, Jaune Arc isn't the only one who's alone. This time, just Jaune isn't surrounded by 'friends' who could tip the scales. Something as simple as that could change… anything. Or perhaps nothing.)_

/

* * *

/

Author Notes:

Whoa. It's almost embarrassing how many people reviewed to comment on potential stories I might never finish (and thus never post). I swear half of ya'll never even reviewed this story until I mentioned them. Huh. Guess I better start putting pen to paper on that outline, then.

Back to the story actually written- people with pattern recognition can probably guess what's coming next chapter. After the last of Jaune's Big Bad Influences, though- well, if I've done my job right, you're still not sure how this will turn out. Call it a different sort of drama than the earlier story: dramatic tension and uncertainty, rather than angst-driven drama. I'm really trying a variety of different types of drama with this one.

This is one of those parts in the story where the 'post a day' style works against as much as for the overall pacing. A slow pace worked great early on in establishing the initial tone and a sense of development over time. You can read 'Common Criminal' in less than half an hour, even though it covers weeks or months of real time, so pacing it over weeks kept it from going too fast. Now that events are coming to a head, it's working in the other direction: a series of events in immediate succession are being drawn out over a week. If it works, you should be in suspense. If it doesn't, the risk is you being bored. At the very least, it will read better on the re-read.

Hopefully you are still entertained. This week leads into one of my favorite segments of the entire story, and I hope you'll appreciate it as much as I've enjoyed creating it.


	36. Crossing Styx 6

**Crossing Styx**

Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY.

/

* * *

/

 _FEAR has two meanings._

 _Forget Everything And Run._

 _Face Everything And Rise._

 _The choice is yours._

-Unknown

/

* * *

/

It's the end of a beautiful day in Vale. The sun is setting in a marvelous way, the birds are singing their last songs, and the thieves of the night are just beginning to stir themselves and show their faces. Truly a picturesque image for the end of a peaceful day, the end of peaceful days, for the Kingdom of Vale.

Mercury is practically skipping as they walk down the street, whistling in tune to the distinctive clinking of the Weapons on his feet. His partner in crime gives him an incredulous look.

"What's got you all fired up?" Emerald asked.

Mercury shot her a smirk. "Jaune's coming back!" he exclaimed with exaggerated enthusiasm. "I'm looking forward to seeing how much progress he's made. This will be fun! I bet he's a match for any girl now."

Emerald gave a scoff. "I doubt it. He can steal a wallet and pick a lock, but I doubt he's that much stronger. Anyone who really knows how to fight would thrash him. We're going to have our work cut out for us to keep him from being smeared to the floor at Beacon."

Mercury stopped in front of her, and turned slowly to meet her with a deadpan expression. "…I know you're incapable of distinguishing flirting from fighting, but please don't lower Jaune to your level. He could totally pick up girls now if he tried."

Her partner's stupidity never ceased to astound her. Seeing her expression, Mercury threw an arm around her and ignored the sharp elbow to his side. Instead he used his other arm to gesture at idealic Vale.

"Look out there, and tell me you can't see it. The panic. The burning buildings. The screams and frenzy of people fleeing from the Grimm as the military bumbles about trying to restore order. Warships firing into the city, bombs falling, mechs fighting mono-a-mono with the creatures of Grimm with the entire city being their arena. All the utterly unprotected buildings, ripe for the picking, no one in the way or in the mind to care."

Despite herself, Emerald's lips ticked upwards. It was like a childhood mayhem fantasy she'd never grown out of, only for adults.

"Now imagine all the single ladies afterwards. Shell-shocked, grieving, and wanting any sense of security or comfort…"

Emerald's smirk dropped. "You are a disgusting monster," she said with perfect honesty.

Mercury snorted and rolled his eyes back at her. "Says the woman who was getting excited at the thought of causing all that grief. And yet, just because I'd try and make some ladies feel better afterwards, I'm worse?" He shot her a disapproving glance. "All I'm saying is- if I can get Jaune to pick up a girl after this, then I am totally ace."

Emerald couldn't quite rebut that, so she attacked. "Is this your version of being on the rebound?" she asked. "So heart-broken after Nikos totally rejected you asking her to the dance, you have to live your fantasies by projecting them onto your wingman?"

Mercury's pride was wounded. "Hey," he rejected, "that was business, all part of the plan. Besides, there's no one in Remnant who could have gotten her to say yes: she and her team totally don't care about anyone not named 'Blake.' Her entire team ditched the dance. Heck, I can't think of the last time I've seen them at school."

Emerald gave a disgusted mutter. "Who does? Oobleck was even more insufferable than usual this morning, going on about how they shouldn't skip classes just because their teammate bailed on them. I wish they'd just get over it already, if only so he'd shut up. Think it would be too much to hope that the Breach takes him out too?"

"It'd make Beacon that much more pleasant," Mercury mused. "Port too. Maybe if we have a chance in the chaos, even Roman could suffer a tragic accident…" he mused.

Yes, technically Cinder had tasked them to recover the man for the next stage of their plan, but having his Lieutenant in their pocket meant they already had a contingency. So long as Jaune survived, they didn't really need Roman any longer…

Emerald grinned. It was moments like this, when they were in perfect synch, that she remembered why she put up with her fellow monster.

"Call it our welcome to Beacon present for Jaune," she said with poisonous sweetness. "If he survives the Breach, that is."

"Oh, he will," Mercury said with absolute certainty. "I'd bet you a hundred lien on that," he offered.

Normally she'd take him up on that- maybe even rig the bet so she'd win, if it didn't mean she'd really have to keep Roman alive then- but something about his conviction caught her attention.

"You… really think that boring wimp is going to go through with this, don't you?" she asked. "You don't think he's going to get cold feet or anything."

"Jaune?" Mercury laughed. "He's up to his neck in all this. Too late to back out of this now. Besides, that kid is a survivor. He's so afraid of dying, he'll do whatever it takes to survive. It's like Cinder said- just offer him a hint of a way out, and he'll keep moving forward over anyone and anything in his way. He's not that complicated. Just have to keep his mind focused."

"And how do you intend to do that?" Emerald asked.

Mercury answered her by not answering, instead giving a merry whistle and going back to practically skipping to the tell-tale clinking of his boots crashing down.

/

* * *

/

 _(In the other time, nearby, and soon, Cinder is proven right and Mercury wins a hundred lien. But it's Emerald who gets the most- her new teammate is more interesting than she thought when he looks over the burning city, takes in the result of their work, and laughs so hard that he cries.)_

/

* * *

/

Author Notes:

I'll admit- I like this one better than Roman's internal monologue and Adam's personal thoughts. They all serve a useful purpose- a capstone reflection of the impressions of Jaune's development by others, the contradictory plans and intentions of the Big Bad Three, foreshadowing elements, and the _(reminder of the Bad End)_. But dayum. They could be dry. At least this one has banter.

And look forward tomorrow for the start of a climatic showdown! Who is Jaune going to face? Who is going to win? And who is going to survive?

Find out (only one of these) next time!


	37. Crossing Styx 7

**Crossing Styx**

Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY.

/

* * *

/

 _FEAR has two meanings._

 _Forget Everything And Run._

 _Face Everything And Rise._

 _The choice is yours._

-Unknown

/

* * *

/

The driver, the only one trusted to drive the train, doesn't even look back as the door opens. "How's it going back there?" he asks. "The Heroes going to break through?"

"Probably not," Jaune says. Not if the cheers on the radio as the Schnee went down were any indication. Not if the Paladins and White Fang up top were telling the truth about pushing back the Reaper back and hurting the Invincible Amazon they'd been putting so many rounds at. So much fire power, forewarned… Huntresses never had a chance to stop the Breach, did they? He'd been right not to put his faith in Heroes.

The driver nodded as if agreeing. "Unless they get here in the next minute or two, they'll be too late. This will be the crime of the century- a legend in the making. The White Fang will go down in the history books for sure."

"Probably," Jaune agrees. "Unless you hit the break and stop us now."

The driver laughs. "Are you kidding? This is our chance! To strike a blow against oppression! To tear down the corrupt world order! We're going to be heroes! Wait for this?" He laughs some more.

[ _"I'll be there when you wake up and it'll be alright, Jaune Arc," she promised. "Just don't give up. Wait for me."_ ]

"Yeah. Right," Jaune chuckles back, eyes hidden behind red glass.

"Not a chance," the faunus dismisses. "Think they'll remember our names when this is over?" he asks wistfully.

"Probably not," Jaune answers, right before Jaune Arc takes control and hacks the unarmed man in the back with his weapon. It's short, brutal, and bloody work, a betrayal that could be called murder, one lacking a Hunter's finesse or a better person's quick mercy. But it gets the job done. He doesn't gloat and he doesn't shoot off a one-liner or give any witty banter afterwards- good enough men kill because they don't see any other choice, not because they enjoy it.

(Just Jaune is off-balance, surprised that Jaune Arc was actually capable of stabbing a man in the back like this. But while Jaune has killed better people for worse reasons, Jaune Arc can take responsibility for this. The ghost of Tukson hovers over him, broad chest still bloody, and nods its ghastly head.)

"Why?" the dying man wants to know. "This was… our chance… to… be… legends…"

"You made your choice," Jaune Arc answers, strangely calm in his resolve. "Me?"

Jaune Arc takes the chance to step over the dying man, but it's Just Jaune who puts his hands on the lever.

/

* * *

/

 _(In no other time, in no other place, did this happen before. There is no precedent. Even the World holds its breath.)_

/

* * *

/

Author Notes:

Dun dun duuuunh!

Prepare for a mind-blowing showdown! Prepare for the most re-written chapter in the entire story! Prepare to hope, to fear, to suspect, to doubt, and to realize and believe!

Prepare for a chapter with only three words of plot progression! But damn, what a three!

But really- prepare for my favorite chapter of the entire story. My advice, whether you've followed this fic from the start or are a late arrival?

Reread the entire story from start to here again. All the clues, all the foreshadowing, and all the subtle things leading up to this point are already there. And then leave your thoughts for this final showdown of Jaune vs Jaune: who is going to emerge victorious, and what will happen? Anyone who guesses right, and can guess why, will have the smug satisfaction of being right.

I can all but guarantee you you're going to want to re-read the story after tomorrow, just to see for yourself.


	38. Oaths Sworn On Styx

**Crossing Styx**

Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY.

/

* * *

/

 _FEAR has two meanings._

 _Forget Everything And Run._

 _Face Everything And Rise._

 _The choice is yours._

-Unknown

/

* * *

/

[ _In another time, but this same place, this was the point Jaune Arc made one last desperate try for control. He failed._ ]

[ _You know this is wrong. Let me out. We can still stop this._ ]

[ _Jaune Arc is either a horrible liar or a foolish optimist. Probably both. Jaune isn't so stupid._ ]

[ _Not only was he the one with blood on his hands, but he wanted it more too- wanted to live as a common criminal more than Jaune Arc ever wanted to die a martyr for or with Ruby Rose._ ]

[ _Jaune Arc takes control and hacks the unarmed man in the back with his weapon. It's short, brutal, and bloody work, a betrayal that could be called murder,_ ]

[ _Jaune has killed better people for worse reasons, Jaune Arc can take responsibility for this_ ]

[ _"It's not too late, Jaune," Ruby said.]_

[ _She gave a smile, hoping against hope that at last he'd believe in her._ ]

[ _She gave Jaune an ambiguously encouraging smile. "Think of it as… a job evaluation," she suggested, not reassuring in the least. "If you pass, great things are in your future."_ ]

[ _'Runaways get what they deserve,_ ' _the friendly man had spat, blood and brain on his boot, a boot that would be on his head if he ever dared to betray-]_

[ _Roman isn't concerned. "We have the White Fang and actual Paladins," he said. "We even have myself and Neo, if it comes to that._ ]

[ _The image of Mercury's iron boot coming down through his face is replaced by the point of a high-quality and classy white heel. The bloody result is the same._ ]

[ _"No," he said. "_ We _can't. I meant what I said- there are people behind this more powerful than you can imagine. Even if we tried to take them on together, we'd both end up dead and they'd still carry it out."_ ]

[ _Jaune looks at him from behind the red glass as if he's an idiot._ " _We don't need to beat them in a fight, just keep them out of the engine room long enough._ _Which will be easier with the White Fang up there, rather than defending down here._ ]

[ _"I know," Jaune admitted and agreed. "I just… can't do better," he sighed._ ]

[ _"I could help you be better," Red offered with a tentative, encouraging smile._ ]

[ _"I don't want you combat ready or your help, I want you safe!" he shouted at them._ ]

[ _-and blissfully unaware of the Breach he was about to unleash, Grimm taking Signal by surprise as hordes flowed forth, overwhelming her as she no doubt tried to defend as many innocents as she could before claws and talons sliced her far worse than bloody Tukson_ -]

[ _"Jaune…" she said, not quite sure what to say. "I didn't need to be protected. I'm a big girl- I drink milk. I can fight."_ ]

[ _People **have** tried," he said. "A hunter fell before us. A traitor with a conscience tried to flee us. We even captured a huntress. Captured!_ _Left to our tender mercies! Just like you!_ _Do you know what they all had in common?"_ ]

[ _"I just thought- I hoped that as long as I kept you out of trouble, then maybe I wasn't such a bad person after all."_ ]

[- _he tries to explain, tries to make her believe so that she'll be disgusted as she should and turn her back like she inevitably would and leave him, just like all the other good people in his life who were better than him had._ ]

[ _"Want help?" she offered instead of leaving. There was a sound of gunshots, and explosions. "Need help?" she asked again._ ]

[ _"Hm? What did you say, Neo? It'd be stupid to share a double-cross with someone who could run off and ruin it? Yes, that would be a terribly stupid and amateurish way to go about a back-stab."_ ]

[ _He really had been a fool to think otherwise- to think that she could be kept safe from the consequences of his own decisions, and the ones he would make in the future._ ]

 _("I'm not concerned about what he sees," Cinder says. "I'm concerned about what he hears. That boy **listens**.")_

[ _First tip being- three can keep a secret if two of them are dead. Think on it._ ]

[ _Everything stops. It really was that simple, wasn't it?_ ]

[ _"Do you see now?" Arc asks, staring straight through the red glass to look him in the eyes. For once, Just Jaune doesn't ignore him- for once, he **listens** to what Jaune Arc has to say._ ]

[ _"I was trying to keep you from getting involved in this," Jaune said, looking back at her. "I don't want you getting hurt because of my mistakes. Because of my choices. Never._ ]

[ _There's nothing right about having to suffer or die in order to prove yourself a good person._ ]

[ _Everything is ready. The train is being loaded with dust. The path is set. Jaune is more than committed: at this point his survival depends on it._ ]

[ _"I said you're a coward, Jaune Arc," she repeated._ ]

[ _"Can't risk letting anyone derail my plan."_ ]

[ _He's prepared to fight anyone who gets in his way._ ]

[ _"We'll stop you, Jaune! My family? We're heroes! If not me, then my sister and her team! Whatever you have in mind, we'll win and then you'll see! We'll prove it's never too late to do the right thing!"_ ]

[ _"I'll believe that when I see it, but I doubt I will," he ultimately said, even as he picked up the pillow_ ]

[ _"I'll be there when you wake up and it'll be alright, Jaune Arc," she promised. "Just don't give up. Wait for me."_ ]

[ _"I'll stay here," Jaune Arc_ ]

[ _told her, tossing the pillow at the bars._ ]

[ _Ruby smiled, trusting him_ ]

[ _Jaune Arc takes the chance to step over the dying man]_

[ _but it's Just Jaune who puts his hands on the lever._ ]

[ _"I don't want to take any chances relying on others for what I should do myself," Jaune says_ ]

[ _Because an Arc never goes back on their word, and he did, dream promise or not, his fault or not, he lied to her and he didn't stay and went back on his word and so must not be an Arc by definition._ ]

[ _She heard the words, but they made no sense. She tried to make a rebuttal, but it should have been so self-evident she didn't know how to explain it._ ]

 ** _["When you wake up you'll still be you inside and we'll still be watching after you with pride because you always make the right choice even if you do everything else wrong first. It will be alright and you won't be alone in the end. Promise."]_**

[ _We'll be gone within the hour. When you wake up again, it will all be over. Everything won't be alright- I won't be here- but at least you'll be alive. Promise._ ]

[ _Arcs never willingly went back on their word. They died first_.]

[ _Ruby's blood chilled._ ]

[ _"Jaune?" Ruby strained to listen._ ]

[ _"That depends on how the plan goes. Hush hush secret," Jaune said, glasses hiding his eyes._ ]

[ _"I just wanted to become a Hunter," he admitted. "It was supposed to be one little white lie to get me there. I didn't mean-" he gasped, a mix of pain and suppressed sob. "I didn't mean for it to become like this."_ ]

[ _"It doesn't have to end here, Jaune," Ruby said, gripping his hand tighter. "Stay with me. We can make things better. Uncle Qrow can help you with whatever trouble you're having, and we can make you a good weapon at Signal and you can be better. You can still become a hero. Just don't give up."_ ]

[ _"I think it's a bit late for that," he muttered, almost too quiet to hear._ ]

[ _"It's never too late to make a fresh start, Just Jaune!" she called, loud enough to ensure his name would be right in the police reports to follow._ ]

[ _Jaune Arc takes the chance to step over the dying man, but it's Just Jaune who puts his hands on the lever._ ]

[ _He paused. "I'm sorry," he admitted as he turned to leave._ ]

He pulls back.

/

* * *

 _/_

 _(In another time, Jaune Arc may have been the hero for helping mitigate the atrocity. In another place, there may never have been a Breach at all. But there is only one time, one place, where the Breach is simply stopped by a mere common criminal before it can be unleashed.)_

 _(And that's this one.)_

 **[ _The day he makes his move, it will be so remarkable that it will become legendary_ ]**

/

* * *

/

there's a moment that changes a life when  
we do something that no one else can  
and the path that we've taken will lead us  
one final stand

/

* * *

/

Author Notes:

~1,450 words long. Less than 60 new words. Only three of them move the plot- but what a three! (And come on- fess up- how many of you read those three words and thought he stepped away from the lever before the clarification? That's last-second suspense right there. Gotta love grammar ambiguity.)

For a chapter that's more than 96% flashback and 99.8% filler, I am 100% proud of this piece. It had to cover a lot of things- the sense of ambiguity about who would come on top, a multi-sided back-and-forth, revelations, tension about whether Jaune would go through with it or not, and more.

It's crazy. Jaune's crazy. And you may be too, if you guessed that it'd be Just Jaune who'd throw the switch.

Now please, go write down your thoughts give me your first impressions so I can see how it worked for you. And then go re-read it all again, and see how the story feels with what you know now compared to what you thought before this chapter, and share that second impression in a later review.


	39. Crossing Styx 9

**Crossing Styx**

Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY.

/

* * *

/

 _FEAR has two meanings._

 _Forget Everything And Run._

 _Face Everything And Rise._

 _The choice is yours._

-Unknown

/

* * *

/

The train shudders and squeals as a result of his defiance. Screams at him for defying what he should have been. He had a future in the underworld! He could have been a revolutionary freedom fighter, or a mighty Hunter, or a truly powerful crime boss in his own right. He could have had the power to choose to be anything he wanted, to have anything he desired. He had so much potential! So much to live for! Why throw his life away?

It's simply the wrong question. It's not just 'his' life: it's theirs. Jaune and Jaune, and a bit of Ruby as well. Just Jaune may have had the choice, but Jaune Arc provided the chance after coming up with the plan. Neither one of them could or would have been able to do it on their own. Jaune Arc had promised to wait for Ruby, given his word without qualifier or time restraint, and given into despair when she hadn't shown. That's why Jaune had been left dominant for so long- because he'd keep moving forward no matter what- but with no energy behind the eyes, no hope, and no chance in believing enough to take the chances necessary to have the choice he wanted. Not until Ruby found him again- maybe late, but not too late to give him a spark of hope, to wake the Arc behind the glass.

And Arc… Jaune Arc was willing to take risks with himself, with others, if only he could see the chance and believed in them. But to pull the lever himself? To him, that would have been giving up on her, going back on the spirit of his word to wait for Ruby, and in a sense that would have killed him before he could ever pull the lever himself. A very real, literal sense.

So Arc needed someone, anyone, to pull the lever. It could have been Ruby. It could have been Ruby's family. Or it could have been a common criminal not bound by the family semblance. As long as he wasn't alone in the end.

There's one more thing they have to do to pull this off, they have only one chance before anyone still aboard might react. They take it not with Roman's Melodic Cudgel, a masterwork weapon befitting a master criminal but currently serving as a door bar, but use Just Jaune's nameless bloody cleaver, the weapon that they're ashamed to call an extension of their soul-

[ _"Cheap mass-produced garbage for thugs and low-lifes," she judged immediately, before pausing awkwardly. "Not, er, that that implies anything about you,"_ ]

-to hack at the brake as they low as they can, so that no monsters, not even him, could release it and restart this train wreck of an atrocity.

His weapon breaks- shatters under the power of their combined strength- but it's just good enough to flawlessly cut the brake in a single blow.

Not even Crocea Mors could have done better.

/

* * *

/

 _(In this time, but another place, a relic that has long-since been forgotten begins to shine. The extension of Arc's soul- the extension of every Arc's soul- begins to thrum in harmony from within the dusty sheath. It- they- are more than pleased as Jaune Arc finds himself once more and prepares to awaken.)_

 _(They glow in pride.)_

/

* * *

/

there's a moment we make a decision  
not to cower and crash to the ground  
the moment we face our worst demons  
our courage found

/

* * *

/

Author Notes:

Today is Jaune Arc's post-pull reflection. Admittedly a bit light, but with a bit more plot progression and dat symbolism. Tomorrow, just Jaune gets his. As for mine-

Overall response to yesterday was positive. Cool- that's nice to see. It was a bit 'artsy,' but it was an experiment that I'm pleased with the results of.

Putting together a complete scene completely from previous scenes could only have been better had the copy-pastes been grammatically correct themselves. But that was too awkward, and too stilted in the host segments- to pull off. [ _Jaune's flashbacks are italics in brackets_ ] was a stylistic decision of the fic. Which was why Cinder's quote about listening, which he wasn't there for, was the only one in regular parenthesis. Plus, brackets tell the computer to not worry about the grammar inside, so you don't get the squiggly underline from the spellchecker.

It's a silly thing, but my biggest regret is not calling last chapter something special, like 'Crossing Rubicon.' 'Crossing Styx' is far better as a name for the Arc, but last chapter deserves something to distinguish it that 'Crossing Styx 8.' 'Crossing Rubicon' would have gotten the sense of a committed action that can't be taken back. I'm just not sure it would fit, but I couldn't think of a good chapter-specific title to make it stand out. Far Shore? Paying the Ferryman? Like I said- I couldn't think of a good one. Feel free to suggest your own.


	40. Crossing Styx 10

**Crossing Styx**

Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY.

/

* * *

/

 _FEAR has two meanings._

 _Forget Everything And Run._

 _Face Everything And Rise._

 _The choice is yours._

-Unknown

/

* * *

/

No one, not Mercury, not the White Fang, not even Neo, could kick this criminal conspiracy back into gear by stomping him now. And that makes Just Jaune's day. He feels-

Cocky. Proud. _Free_. He wants to crow, to gloat, to laugh deeply and darkly and boast to everyone involved in Cinder's Conspiracy that he's beaten them. For so long he's been so afraid of the cost of defiance, afraid that it would not only be feeble and fatal but also futile- that there was no point because there was no chance that it could work. That he'd have no choice but to keep moving through it, no matter how bad, because it couldn't get any better and never would.

But that was before Ruby talked and Jaune listened and Arc made an offer he couldn't refuse. That was when an entire Criminal Underworld seemed determined to make this Breach happen. Deals were struck, bargains offered, and all the stars aligned. The World might as well have promised Cinder success.

But it did, it's been made into a liar, forced to go back on its word, and her ambitions are dying and burning away as a result.

Cinder's conspiracy is up in flames, because just one person, just Jaune, stole defeat from the jaws of victory amongst the teeth of the White Fang, right under Roman Torchwick's nose no less.

When criminal underworld realizes what happened? That today would be the day he made his move? When they understand that his greatest crime yet as a common criminal wouldn't be the lost lives they didn't care about, but the unforgivable crime of betrayal of what they did?

Jaune's name will outlive him, will live forever, immortal in a way typically reserved for Heroes. He will become **_legendary_** _._

So, no doubt, will be his suffering if they ever get their hands on him. When the consequences of his actions catch up to him. But it won't matter- the entire Underworld could come at him now, try to take back what he's done, and they'd find that no matter how much they tried, it truly was too late.

So bring it all- it's not enough to take him down. Not this place, not today, and not like this. He may fall, but he's already _won._

He might have been an underdog match against the White Fang guard. He absolutely wouldn't have stood a chance against the likes of Neo in a fair fight, even two on one-

[ _I meant what I said- there are people behind this more powerful than you can imagine. Even if we tried to take them on together, we'd both end up dead and they'd still carry it out._ ]

-but Jaune learned from the worst and doesn't believe in fair fights.

[ _Even if no one gives us a chance, we can still make choices that can change the world._ ]

By now no one should be surprised to remember that he isn't above lying, or cheating, or smuggling, or threatening, or even hurting and killing people to get what he wants. To get what he'd always wanted, besides keeping Ruby out of trouble. To steal a chance to determine his own life, and to make the final choice himself.

Really, what would you expect from a common criminal and occasional thief? Honor?

/

* * *

/

 _(The ghost of the blonde boy hovers above broken switch, before turning once more to look at Jaune. Somewhere in the crater, somehow from beyond the grave, there's a smile in his eyes, and in his hand is a stolen half-eaten pomegranate Jaune's never been able to find.)_

 _(The blonde boy makes no movement to leave him, doesn't even try even though he's finaly done something right, and at long last Jaune realizes that he isn't some vengeful spectre to haunt him for his failures.)_

 _(He's here in solidarity.)_

/

* * *

/

when we stand with friends  
and we won't retreat  
as we stare down death  
then the taste is sweet

/

* * *

/

Author Notes:

Ah, Just Jaune. He's been fun to write with- an 'Unfettered' Jaune, but at the same time someone I never actually gave much personal motivation to. He was interested in the pursuit of power- but mostly for the sake of being powerful enough to make his own choices. The idea that he wanted it so that he could be an exceptional criminal was more of a projection of his Big Bad Influences projecting their wants onto him. (And the readers. None of whom seem to have realized they were called out in Crossing Styx 2, haha.) What he actually wanted to do once he had that sort of power was never touched on.

And to think, Jaune, people wanted to put you down like the dog you are. Well, I suppose it's not too late...

And thanks to... 'Guest', for giving the best recommendation for a title name for Underworld 8, now to be known as 'Oaths Sworn on Styx.' In Greek mythology, oaths sworn by the gods by the River Styx could not be taken back and would never be reneged on. It was an unbreakable promise and commitment, which is a great thematic fit for this story, the multiple promises in play, and an appropriate indicator that Jaune pulling the break is something he can't go back on now. Thanks, Guest!


	41. Crossing Styx 11

**Crossing Styx**

Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY.

/

* * *

/

 _FEAR has two meanings._

 _Forget Everything And Run._

 _Face Everything And Rise._

 _The choice is yours._

-Unknown

/

* * *

/

As if in anger the train begins to slam to a stop, doing its best to throw him off his feet and toss them around the cabin like a rag doll. There's no point in fighting each other at this point, so they don't, and they tumble around together on the same side of the red glass wall, where it's impossible to tell where one of them ends and the other begins.

In a moment of zen, a moment of precarious balance on the precipice between falling and not quite yet, Jaune Arcs sees the dead man he murdered below him and Just Jaune explains why he went along with this _suicidal_ plan that Arc had approached him with. Why he was willing to die, when for so long his priority in life was to live as a common criminal.

Tells him what Jaune Arc had told him, on the wrong side of the Ruby's jail cell bars, when he'd finally been ready to listen.

"A crime this big is too big for me. If I did it, even if I just stood by and watched, I wouldn't be just a common criminal anymore."

Justin John, the notorious, infamous, and ambitious lieutenant of Roman Tochwick, could have done it. Would have done it. Everyone already thinks Justin John is a mass-murderer already, so an atrocity would have been just the thing to give birth to his legend instead. Justin John would have had everything befitting a criminal of his stature and potential- the clothes, the new weapon, the power, the team, the choice, and maybe one day even the woman.

But Justin John doesn't exist. Not yet, and now not ever. There's only one Jaune in the Vale criminal underworld and he's just Jaune, and Just Jaune is just a common criminal. Common criminals don't commit the crime of the century.

If he hadn't done this, if he'd become something worse than a common criminal, became the sort of _thing_ that would have callously sacrificed an entire Kingdom and the only nice girl he had ever met since the death of his family, then he wouldn't be Jaune anymore, Just or otherwise. And if he wasn't Just Jaune anymore, fell further than a common criminal, if he became something and someone else, then there wouldn't be a 'Jaune Arc' anymore in any sense and Jaune would be just as good as dead all the same.

He may be damned if he does, and damned worse if he doesn't, but Just Jaune wants the final choice over his own life more than anything- and that includes the choice on how he dies. He'd rather die, immortalized as the common criminal who derailed the world's greatest conspiracy never fulfilled, than fade away under Justin John's rule. When Arc had put it like that, it wasn't a hard choice. It had taken him as long to decide as it had taken to throw a pillow.

Jaune and Arc had agreement: Arc refused to stand by and let the chance to stop this go by without trying, Jaune refuse to die heroically with Ruby Rose in a vain attempt at heroism (because that would mean Ruby Rose would die heroically with them), but neither wanted to disappear to give birth to Justin John. This was the least-bad option they could think of. It really is that simple. All Jaune needed to pull it off was a true chance to succeed, and not just die in vain.

The train comes crashing to a halt. The body below barely slides. Jaune is the only one alive standing, off balance and with nothing in reach and no one to hold on to. Jaune finally falls, but not like he could have.

[ _There's nothing right about having to suffer or die in order to prove yourself a good person._ ]

He still believes that, but that's not why he did this. It wasn't just to prove something to the World. The World doesn't matter- people matter, and people like Ruby would have been hurt or worse. Ruby would have been hurt or worse, even if she were miles away. And Ruby is- Ruby is important to him, more precious than all the Dust he's ever stolen, _golden_ even. Even if he's not a good friend (who never stays in touch and makes her worry and always leaves her behind), he's still concerned for her in his own way.

So don't think this is because he was a good person. He's not- he's cowardly and self-centered and selfishly cares more about his fears than concern for others. Ruby being hurt just happens to be one of them. If it weren't for her, he'd surely have gone ahead with this. He's still a bad person, he's sure- still a murderer and a thief and a liar and a thug, the kind of person who would betray and trust and dreams of friend and foe alike. Someone who fails to live up to expectations, who even to the end needed to rely on someone else to do what he should have done on his own.

And worst of all, he was the sort of person to go back on his word. Unforgivable, irredeemable, worst of the worst he's sure-

[ _"Oh, I don't know if I'd go that far," Ruby returned. "You look more like a common criminal to me. Flunky material at best," she snickered._ ]

-but still just a common criminal.

This is what completion feels like. To be what you are, all that you are and everything you were meant to be, and nothing else but. He's never felt so _alive._

/

* * *

/

 _(Here, now, Just Jaune Arc, the man who will go down in underworld legend as the most famous common criminal of all, hated above all nobler heroes, exists as the antithesis of Justin John, the one so many dark hopes had been pinned on. They will want their revenge- but to do that they'll have to catch him first, and his is the legend where he escaped a Huntress in the middle of a burglary just by talking.)_

 _(Just Jaune Arc is the only one laughing as he flies off his feet, crashes head-first into the controls, and falls on his own bloody cleaver.)_

/

* * *

/

i may fall  
but not like this -it won't be by your hand  
i may fall  
not this place, not today  
i may fall  
bring it all-it's not enough to take me down  
i may fall

/

* * *

/

Author Notes:

Aaaand that's (almost) it for Crossing Styx. Final chapters for Crossing Styx tomorrow. That's right- plural. For future posting considerations, I'm posting the last two chapters of Crossing Styx for the finale. That's not quite as impressive as it sounds- one of them is Crossing Styx 5.5, which works nicely as a flash-back but is way too spoiler-y to read before the Big Decision- but consider it something nice to help lead into the next, and final, main story arc.


	42. Crossing Styx 5 and a half

**Crossing Styx**

Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY.

/

* * *

/

 _FEAR has two meanings._

 _Forget Everything And Run._

 _Face Everything And Rise._

 _The choice is yours._

-Unknown

/

* * *

/

(It's not real. It's not a dream either. It's a flashback not five minutes old.)

 _"But just in case… I need to borrow this," Jaune says as he gently lifts the cane, a weapon befitting a unique criminal, out of the hands of the beaten and bruised man._

 _Roman gives him a curious look. "What are you up to?" he asks._

[Red fan-girled. "Weapons are amazing!" she claimed. "They're like an extension of your soul! Someone's weapon says a lot about them. I just had to have the best weapon possible to be the best Hero I could be!"]

 _"Not going to take any chances in securing the engine room," Just Jaune reassures. "Can't risk letting anyone derail my plan."_

 _He's prepared to fight anyone who gets in his way._

 _Roman, who must be hurting more than he wants to admit, doesn't protest the loss of his weapon. Maybe it was commissioned, something fancier than Jaune's cleaver but still just a commercial transaction. Just bought, not forged from his own soul._

 _"Remind me to teach you how to adapt your plans," he said, struggling to sit up. "I'll do it right after I teach you how to do a double-cross."_

 _Jaune Arc knocks his employer back down with a brutal blow from the man's own cane. It's so sudden, so unexpected, Roman doesn't even realize what occurred before the cane punches through the residual aura barrier and knocks the man out. The cane slides out of Jaune's hands, half thrown and half out of shock at his first near kill._

 _"I think I know already," Just Jaune says with a hint of contempt before turning and making his way into the lead car. Three can keep a secret if two of them are dead, but in this case two of them kind of already are dead, or at least dead men walking. Just Jaune and Jaune Arc are stuck in this underworld together, neither expects to live through the attempt, and even if Jaune really hadn't intended to let her go in the first place he'd at least made sure Ruby wouldn't know enough to get caught up in the reckless and brazen plot. Whatever else she chooses to do, at least he kept her out of this dangerous double-cross that Jaune Arc had proposed when Jaune had finally been willing to listen._

 _There's just one problem left- two of them, really. The ghosts of Blonde Boy and Bloody Tukson stare down at him, refusing to give way between him in the door. Just staring through the red glasses and at him._

 _"Move," he tries to command them. "I need to get through." But they don't. They're waiting on something, waiting on him._

 _"Please," he tries again, but this time it's Jaune Arc asking. Begging. "I- I can't guarantee what he'll do. I can't promise I'll succeed. But I have to try. Please- just let me pass. I'm sorry," he apologizes to the two ghosts in front of him. He wonders if he'll have to plead for forgiveness. To get on his knees and beg, even if even he can't guarantee what just Jaune will do._

 _Get on his knees he does, but not by choice. The first clue reminding him of the third ghost's presence is when Roman's cane crashes into the back of his knees, forcing them to buckle, sending him crashing to the floor. He half expects to look up to be staring down the muzzle of the Melodic Cudgel when he does… and he does. But only for the moment._

 _Even as Bloody Tukson's clawed hands gently lifts him to his feet, even as the Blonde Boy begins to open the locked door, its Black Cat's eyes that he can't look away from. Golden, unforgettable- and with a hint of something different, something between a mysterious smile and a challenge._

 _'We're even now,' she might as well have said. Black Cat reverses her grip, flipping the cane and offering it to him. When he takes it, she lets go and lets it drop into his hands, before turning and taking a position to guard the door. She won't last long, but if the White Fang returns the sight of her alone will give them pause for a few precious seconds._

 _They're not the only one stop to stare for a second, even as Blonde and Bloody opens the door. Just Jaune does as well. Not because she didn't kill him (she could have), not because she was here (she didn't have to be), not even because she's beautiful in her determination (she is, and even Just Jaune can admit it)._

 _It's because it's the only time Jaune can remember seeing her just as she last was in the Rally: unharmed, unscarred, and defiant until the end. It gives him just a little bit of hope._

/

* * *

/

 _(_ _He must be crazy to think they have a chance at pulling this off, considering Neo could teleport in any moment. He's probably crazy regardless, but he doesn't need Ruby to not be alone in this choice. You're never truly alone when you have an accomplice in your own head and ghosts all around watching over you._ _)_

/

* * *

/

Author Notes:

Crossing Styx 5.5. I like it, but it would have killed the pre-Oaths suspense of what Jaune was intending to do. Which was, bottom line, that he was intending to stop it- though Just Jaune wouldn't have gotten himself killed it if he didn't think he had a chance, and might not have even if he did. The Bad Ends refers to the timelines in which Jaune never had the chance to act.

Weird thing- yesterday was the first day this fic has gone without a review. Either that or FFN was off the fritz. I didn't think last chapter was that bad- but hey. Slow day. I don't expect many/any reviews for this chapter, since Crossing Styx finale will be this afternoon.

On better news- this fic (and the entire 'Or Something' anthology) has its own page on TVtropes. You can find the link to it in the RWBY fanfic section under the general fics. Milestone achieved- now go out there and fill up the tropes list!


	43. Crossing Styx: Far Shore

**Crossing Styx**

Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY.

/

* * *

/

 _FEAR has two meanings._

 _Forget Everything And Run._

 _Face Everything And Rise._

 _The choice is yours._

-Unknown

/

* * *

/

When she's running through the myriad of caves and tunnels- when she's using her semblance so much that only luck or chance or some invisible guide could be responsible for taking her down the right paths to the right turns without crossing the wrong people or running out of steam in front of worse monsters- she swears the wind whispers to her.

 ** _[It will be alright and you won't be alone in the end. Promise.]_**

She's proud of him. Proud that they both made the right choice even if he believed it hopeless. Proud of Jaune Arc, who really is still there deep down behind those glasses. Proud that someone like Jaune chose to call himself her friend even though they should obviously have been enemies if judged on their choices alone. Even if it may have been lie just to deceive, just a half-truth intended to protect her, she can forgive that. If it was a half-truth then it was half-true, if it was half-true then it was half-right, and half a friend is an entire friend who just needs a little help to be whole again.

 ** _[It will be alright and you won't be alone in the end. Promise.]_**

She can forgive him for the mistakes he made along the way- she might not know them all yet, but even if she cares she'll manage to forgive him in time. She's forgiven closer for worse. Forgiven Yang's rampages and occasional debauchery and mischievous mayhem that left people hurt, really hurt, including what almost happened when they were kids. Forgave her Father for falling apart on them and not being a Father for so long. Forgave her Mother not coming home and doing that to him. Forgave her mother for going back on her word and not coming back home to _her_ , which was as bad as if Summer Rose had chosen to kill herself. If she could choose to forgive that, forgive the death of the person closest to her through the betrayal of the one she'd loved most, she could forgive a common criminal who'd been alone and weak and too afraid to dare take a chance.

 ** _[It will be alright and you won't be alone in the end. Promise.]_**

She knew what that was like, even if she didn't remember. She'd been alone, with no friends and precious little family that often seemed absent. And she'd been weak- before she'd been Ruby Rose, a warrior in a child's body, she'd been just Ruby, a child in a child's body. She'd been as small and overwhelmed as the best (and worst) of them, and it wasn't until she'd had the support of her family and forged a part of her soul into a her weapon, her Crescent Rose, that she'd found the strength to rise above that. So she knew what it was like to be alone and weak and afraid- she was even weak now, running around without her baby. But she couldn't let fear stop her, not if she wanted to be in time. She couldn't afford to be tardy if she wanted to prove to Jaune that it was never too late to do the right thing.

 ** _[It will be alright and you won't be alone in the end. Promise.]_**

She needs to hurry if she's to keep her word- even if she already called her family to warn them and warn Vale before the train departed, there's still more to do. She has to save the day and rescue Jaune and probably knock some sense into him before she can finally drag him back to Signal to make that weapon they'd talked about, something that would suit him better than a common cleaver. She has a lot to show him, about being heroic and fighting the good fight and her family and her as a friend, and that just because life wasn't a fairy tale didn't mean you couldn't still have a chance to earn a happy ending so long as you didn't give up on hope and kept trying to make the right choices moving forward in life.

[ _When you wake up again, it will all be over. Everything won't be alright- I won't be here- but at least you'll be alive. Promise._ ]

That's what Jaune had forgotten. Jaune, who had made so many wrong choices, who made so many mistakes in so many ways and believed so many wrong things as a result. He'd failed so many times he couldn't believe in himself, and so had believed in her instead, as if she were a flawless gem herself. She wasn't, no more than he was irrevocably tarnished. As a friend she'd prove him wrong, so that he could start being right again. Not the person who'd promised he wouldn't be there, and put himself in harm's way to keep her out of it. Not the person who had didn't believe he could live up to the family honor, or the person who couldn't live with having sullied a dead family's name. He just needed a friend to help him be the good person he always should have been. Not just Jaune. Not just the Arc. Just Jaune Arc.

No way she'd miss out on that. Choose to sleep through the chance to be the friend to help him become that person.

There are monsters lurking in the darkness, pitfalls waiting behind each wrong turn. Fiends that want to keep their prize of all the souls who foolishly come below into this underworld of theirs. The little girl in a red hood pays the shadows no mind and masters her fears once more as she gathers her semblance once again, considering which of the ghostly-lit diverging paths she should sprint down this time.

"It's going to be alright, Jaune. I'll be there soon. Promise," she whispers, quietly enough that nothing living could possibly hear her.

 ** _[…it'll have to do.]_**

The insistent wind in her ear quieted and let Ruby concentrate on managing her semblance. Her heart itched again, but didn't hurt- instead it seemed to overflow, filling her lungs with energy, giving her a second and a third and a fourth wind, as many as she needed. The wind in the caverns helped too, kept pushing at her back and pulling her down this path or that turn seemingly at random. In the corner of her eyes, but never where she can make them out, the hints of dim figures face off against flickering shadows of the routes she doesn't go down.

Her luck holds out as well as her energy- she feels like she's moving with the stamina of ten, or tapping nine additional auras each larger than her own. Her semblance is barely sipping at the energy and determination to keep her word that she feels right now, and Ruby is running faster and further and for longer than she ever has before and ever will again in her life. Ruby keeps moving forward with the wind as her guide, trusting in fate or luck or spirits or whatever you wish to believe in that she was on the right path.

Deeper and deeper into the caves and tunnels of this underworld so far from the lights of Signal and Beacon, Ruby Rose chases after Jaune and races to catch up with him while she still has the chance.

/

* * *

/

 _(She's set the terms of her Word in her heart. It will be alright. She will be there. Soon. It's a promise with more than one soul at stake.)_

/

* * *

/

 _End Crossing Styx_

/

* * *

/

Author Notes:

And when she says 'soon,' I mean 'sometime next week.'

So here we have the end of Crossing Styx, the perfect opportunity to give your thoughts on the story to date and this arc in particular, if you haven't already. FFN is working again, so I'll even be able to see it. But now's also your last best chance to back out now, if this fic isn't what you wanted or enjoyed. For some people, their enjoyment of this fic was Jaune's angst and spiral towards evil, and anything else was going to be a cop out and poor writing. That train has left the station, I'm afraid, and it really won't return. Thanks for your patience, but I'm afraid this isn't, and never was going to be, that kind of story.

For everyone else- thank you too for your patience. Even if it took so long, pretty every chapter has had it's reason for being, something to show- even 5.5. Taken together, it's (hopefully) been an emotional roller coaster to date, with each arc having its own sort of tension and drama. Common Criminal was the slow fall and missed chances. Underworld was the rise of Just Jaune, and the question of what there was left of Jaune Arc underneath it. Crossing Styx dealt with the uncertainty of what Jaune was going to do, what he could do, and what sort of choice he'd ultimately make. In each of these I'd like to think I kept you uncertain and guessing. That's going to be harder this coming week, considering the title.

Tomorrow begins the final chapters in Jaune's story as a common criminal. The chapters in which responsibility is taken, consequences occur, and peace is made as Jaune waits for Ruby. There are dueling promises in play- and Ruby and Jaune's promises could hardly be more different. Whose Word will prove stronger? Will things be alright in the end, or not? Who will be alive at the end of the day?

Styx has been crossed- but by who, and in which direction?

Tomorrow begins: Dirge.


	44. Dirge 1

**Dirge**

Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY.

/

* * *

/

 _The hardest part of ending is starting again._

-Unknown

/

* * *

/

Jaune's vision clears moments after the crash, but his mind first recognizes to the squealing and screaming of the radio. All that's left to do now is listen while he waits to see if Ruby will make it or not.

The train's sudden stop throws everyone off balance, literally and figuratively. White Fang members are doubtless thrown overboard to their deaths, either from the fall or the grimm that follow. The mechs on top stumble out of secure firing positions. Who knows what happened to the Huntress team- they practically disappear in the commotion, and are all but forgotten. Answers for the stop are demanded. Calls to the engine room go unanswered. Even if he wanted to, Jaune couldn't right now. Not from where he slid on the floor after the crash.

(His aura might have protected his face but it's doing nothing for how much it hurts to breathe after falling onto his own weapon. Sliced rib? Punctured lung? Internal bleeding? The only thing he can probably rule out is stabbing his own heart- and even then he's not sure when aura gets involved. His cleaver is red with his own blood regardless. He doesn't know how to check- and it hurts too much to try. His aura is a mixed blessing- it's closed the wounds and kept him from bleeding out for the time being, but it'll do nothing to save him from what's to follow.)

Confusion and anger quickly turn to fear across the train as the truth sets in, emotions that only draw the Grimm in faster.

"Control? Control, what's going on?" someone asks. "We have to get moving! They're catching up! The Grimm are-" gunfire resumes, filling the line, but this times there's hisses and snarls and screams to go along with it.

As hard as it is to hear through the ringing and pain and the desperate need for sleep, Jaune forces himself to stay awake and listen to it all, to not turn off the earbud. He has to wait. Has to see this through. To hear the consequences of his heroism, even as he sees them in his mind. Screams of pain as grown fighters beg for their mothers. Cries of fear as terrorists beg for salvation from the very Hunters they were just trying to kill. Moments of bravery as men and women stand against the dark beasts in defense of their comrades, only to turn bitter as they are defeated and devoured. Paladins stand against the tide, holding the line, until they too are overwhelmed and fall. The reports creep toward his position steadily.

The Lieutenant has the mind to try and reclaim the cabin. He rallies a defense and has others to try and force down the door. Their desperate attempts only grow stronger as the howls and snarls crawl up the cars.

It is futile, though. Roman's cane is wedged against the door, just where Bloody Tukson had put it after Jaune had taken his fall and couldn't get up to do it himself. When Roman himself bangs on the door, calling for Jaune to wake up and come to his senses and promising anything to get him to restart the train, new clothes or a new weapon or all the ill-gotten gains in the world, Jaune says nothing and the ghosts do nothing but brace the door harder.

Eventually the Grimm sounds aren't cars away, only two, and there's a different sort of screaming and begging going on the other side of the door as bare fingers claw for sanctuary.

/

* * *

/

Author Notes:

If you think this is grimm and uncomfortable, you should read the fic outline I penned out yesterday: the one 'Or Something' I had to get out of my head but never, ever, intend to write or publish. Consider that your teaser, and eternal 'your happiness should be thankful you neverread it,' for 'An Affair or Something'- the Ruby/Jaune/Pyrrha story that will thankfully never be.

(If you want the outline, just to see what my stories look like in the planning page, PM me.)


	45. Dirge 2

**Dirge**

Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY.

/

* * *

/

 _The hardest part of ending is starting again._

-Unknown

/

* * *

/

He stays because he's waiting for her, for as long as he can, even as he feels his energy fade and his vision slowly dims. He listens to what he has done, and silently accepts the blame for it- every curse on the net as men and women die, every dashed hope and crushed dream and shattered body and devoured soul. He'll accept it all- he'd promised he'd stay, and even if it's a bit late he won't flee. Even as the Grimm pace outside the door, clawing at it and pounding at it until the hinges groan and buckle. He won't run away from his responsibility this time.

(He could try- it's never too late to try they say. He could attempt to restart the train, figure out how to disengage the break, move it forward and commit the Breach. Assuming he survived the crash and managed to stumble to safety, assuming he could keep ahead of the Grimm hoard on the other side of the door, he could lie about what happened to Cinder, claim it was the Hunters and that he salvaged the plan. That's just Jaune and Jaune Arc's only chance to live that they can see. But that's not their choice.)

So they wait. They listen. They slowly prepare to die. And they take responsibility- not just by staying, but by confessing their sins into the scroll he carries with him. A recorded confession, for whoever comes and eventually cleans up this mess. Every crime they committed. Every person who suffered because of them.

(The ghosts of a blonde boy he didn't stop and bloody Tukson who he did and Black Cat, they all watch at he confesses his culpability- they still won't leave him alone, but this time their presence is a kindness. There's a gentle solidarity about them, and the hint of a smile from all three faunus. He thanks them from the bottom of his heart, thanks them enough for two people- he doesn't want to die alone in the end, just him and himself sharing the space behind red-tinged glasses.)

It's his Confession, so significant to him it deserves the capital C. It is the last good thing he can think to do in this life. Everything he knows- about Roman's crime ring, about the White Fang safe houses, about Cinder and her conspiracy, about stolen Atlean military hardware and student moles in Beacon and the Faunus revolution to come. Everything he did wrong. Everything he regrets. Everything that should be dragged into the light and condemned and brought to account.

It's all there. It's all done. For the first time in too long, he feels relieved and without worry. The World or the Creator or whatever Great Planer besides Cinder might not be pleased that he didn't choose to go along with her atrocity (haha, in the end heroes couldn't stop the Breach but a simple common criminal ended up pulling the breaks on it, oh he wishes he had a friend who would have appreciated the pun), but who cares about them? The World doesn't matter- people matter, and if they knew what he'd done they might even approve. Maybe forgive him a fraction for what he's done, if they learn about this.

It's a strange criminal confession that ranks being turned away from school above dust smuggling, but that's alright. He was an uncommonly young common criminal.

/

* * *

/

Author Notes:

Clearly the moral of this story is: stay in school, kids. Or you too could become a criminal who stops a major world-shaping atrocity and then leaks the villainous plans to the authorities.

Wait, that doesn't sound right...


	46. Dirge 3

**Dirge**

Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY.

/

* * *

/

 _The hardest part of ending is starting again._

-Unknown

/

* * *

/

It's almost over now. He can't wait much longer.

The Grimm are pounding at the door- huffing and puffing and blowing holes through the iron as they try to get to him within. There are snarls and barks and in the distance he thinks he hears gunshots, the last remaining survivors holding out. They sound closer now than they did before, somehow. He must be delusional but he isn't dead yet. He has something he can still do, should do, especially before the Grimm deliver a bloody and painful death upon him.

Jaune, Just Jaune Arc, still dressed in his goon suit and cheap clip-on tie and signature red glasses, takes the shattered remains of his cheap, crappy, mass-produced bloody cleaver that you really can still see the blood on, raises it to his neck level as if considering-

[ _"Weapons are amazing!" she claimed. "They're like an extension of your soul! Someone's weapon says a lot about them."_ ]

-and throws it away into the corner, the same corner as Roman's cane that he stole from the thief. It flies through Bloody Tukson, leaving one last scar, and even the ghosts warily step away from it where it lays.

"I don't need you anymore," they say, and not just because he couldn't use it competently if he tried. It's a fake sort of power- useful, but it never empowered him to be a better person, not like a good weapon forged from a good soul could. Even before it broke, he should have tossed it aside long ago. It's not that he's not afraid of the Grimm things to come-

[' _I don't want to die!' His hands scrabbled for something, anything to use. The door, Tukson's muscles, nothing came to hand. Nothing but the hilt of his laughably pathetic weapon_.]

-but it won't save him, and never brought him any real security or confidence. It never gave him the chance he could have used to do the right thing. He couldn't have even sold it for a full belly and warm bed for month- only a good weapon was worth that much. But now, as his energy fades, he just wants it gone from him while he still can.

He hopes it's the last time he ever holds the bloody cleaver his legend will be remembered by.

His Rubrem Mors.

/

* * *

/

Author Notes:

And the his nameless crappy weapon, a common cleaver, finally has its Name revealed. If Jaune the Common Criminal is going down in legend, his iconic weapon would be elevated to. Because that's how legends, or at least RPGs, work, dontcha know.

'Rubrem Mors' is latin for 'Red Death.' It also happens to be one letter away from being an anagram of 'Redrum.' Which is murder backwards. Which is what it does. While 'Rubrem' calls to mind 'Ruby.' Whose really important to Jaune's story. See how it all ties together? [/pretension]

Ooh, and someone pointed out that this is the 7th most reviewed RWBY fic on the site. That's... more than a little cool. In fact, thanks to you, it's the third most reviewed Jaune fic as well, way behind the famous 'The Games We Play,' the Gamer serial escalation fic in which no matter how overpowered Jaune is, he's always suffering because the world is even more broken, and a fic that's... actually called 'Jaune Arc's Pain.' While the fic most likely to overtake Comm Criminal in terms of reviews next is 'Auburn,' which... has even more Jaune suffering.

Wow. For a bunch of Jaune fans, we really like to see him suffer. Don't even pretend you all aren't a bunch of sadists as well.


	47. Dirge 4

**Dirge**

Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY.

/

* * *

/

 _The hardest part of ending is starting again._

-Unknown

/

* * *

/

Ruby still hasn't shown. Considering the throngs of Grimm around the train, that's probably for the best.

Jaune Arc, the son of heroes who die before going back on their word, is prepared to accept the consequences of his actions and brave enough to die so that innocents won't. Just Jaune, the criminal persona he made make and bear the guilt for all the choices he couldn't stand to, a common criminal he never gave a chance to be anything else because he was too weak and cowardly to take responsibility himself, is afraid now that the adrenaline rush of the moment has faded. Resigned, willing to go along with this rather than become something far worse, rather die a common criminal than live as the sort of monster that would have carelessly sacrificed Ruby for his own ambitions, but still afraid.

There's one thing left Just Jaune Arc can do to make it up to his criminal persona (the part of him that stole and killed and hurt people, but also kept him alive and tried to pick the lesser evils and really did want nothing more than to simply have a choice and keep a little red-hooded girl safe and out of trouble), and that's this.

Jaune takes off his cheap red-shaded glasses, wipes them against the cleanest part of his suit he can, and looks them straight in the eye. The red glass wall, so small and fragile when seen from the other side, show the blue eyes of his own reflection.

"Thanks," he says to himself, but it is okay to talk to himself now because it's almost over and some things need to be said, "for trying to keep her out of trouble. And sorry for everything else. I'll take it from here."

(The man in the glasses has things to say back to him. Things like 'I didn't do it for you,' and demeaning dismissals of his abilities and careful reminders of what will happen now that Just Jaune isn't around to protect Jaune Arc anymore or do the dirty work of living for him. But most of all…

"Ruby… is a nice girl," Jaune admits far too late. "Too nice. She's going to cry when she finds us, and she shouldn't. But if she gets here in time… tell her I'm sorry."

"Tell her yourself," Arc jokes, but gives his word all the same.)

With respectful finality, he solemnly puts the glasses on a counter above him, as far away as he can push them with his hat. The Grimm won't care to bother them. They'll survive. That's all they ever wanted- or at least in the top three, behind choosing and keeping Ruby safe. The thing that made Jaune just Jaune, no Arc, by hiding the light and the guilt and everything else in the eyes, is safely removed.

And with that Jaune, just Jaune, is put to rest.

[ _We'll be gone within the hour._ ]

And so it was, fifty five minutes later.

/

* * *

/

Author Notes:

And after so long, Jaune, just Jaune, is gone. I've always considered him the real tragic hero of this story- tragic in the sense of eliciting pity and fear. He primarily existed because Jaune Arc was too afraid and dispirited to take responsibility for his life- a coping mechanism that became a mask that became its own identity and co-equal spirit. Such a long journey.

Speaking of so long, talk about time dilation. Two and a half weeks of updates to take one hour. Jaune went directly from the cell to the train, waited for it to get moving, walked down the train, waited for the Weiss-Roman fight to finish, and pulled the handle. The entirety of Crossing Styx probably took half an hour.

There's not much time left, Ruby. Hurry.


	48. Dirge Final Verse

**Dirge**

Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY.

/

* * *

/

 _The hardest part of ending is starting again._

-Unknown

/

* * *

/

He can't wait for Ruby any longer. It's no longer his choice.

Jaune Arc slumps back down, not even bothering to re-don his hat. He watches the door with unshielded blue eyes as it buckles and groans as claws scrabble and try to break through, and he waits for the end.

[ _When you wake up again, it will all be over. Everything won't be alright- I won't be here- but at least you'll be alive. Promise."_ ]

He hopes that it will still hold true. That even without Crocea Mors, that his Arc Word still applies. Hopes that Ruby went to sleep like he told her to, so that she can wake up again like he wanted her to, so that she'd at least be alive. Everything won't be alright- but hopefully enough will be so that whoever cares, not the World but the people who matter, will agree that it's alright enough. The Breach was stopped. He's done what he can to leak Cinder's conspiracy when the authorities come to investigate. And Ruby…

She'd cry. She was a nice girl like that, and nice girls like her shouldn't cry over bad- shouldn't cry over people like him. But at least one of them should be there in the morning to see what tomorrow looks like.

[ _"When you wake up you'll still be you inside and we'll still be watching after you with pride because you always make the right choice even if you do everything else wrong first. It will be alright and you won't be alone in the end. Promise."_ ]

He takes a look around, hoping that he could see his family one last time before he dies. Ghost, semblance, he wouldn't care. Even a mind-altering semblance or a hallucination would be find. But there are no Arcs around. Maybe there's another person with a bit of Arc inside them and they're watching over that worthy soul instead. If so, godspeed to them.

"Liar," he says to his absent sister, but with a soft smile none the less. He'd already known that, of course. She'd died, after all- before she could go back on her word. And she'd never promised who would be watching- never promised that it would be family, rather than patient strangers he'd never know the names of. At least he'd kept his promise, in a sense. Cinder had gotten him into Beacon, even if he wouldn't be showing up. He'd met Ruby Rose, a girl so nice he wouldn't have believed in her if he hadn't met her. As for family pride…

Well, for better and for worse he'd tried to keep moving forward, and in the end he'd done the right thing, after doing everything else wrong first. They'd understand.

Maybe that's why he's not alone in the end. Not really. Instead of family, three ghosts and one pair of comforting red glasses silently promise to watch over him in their stead. That had always been a bad habit of hers- relying on others to keep promises she couldn't- but she'd always been a good judge of character. These few really are here to keep him company until the end as he waits for his reaper, along with the memories of an ill-lived life.

[ _"I could help you be better," Red offered with a tentative, encouraging smile._ ]

"I wish I'd taken you up on that."

A single talon cuts through the door like a scythe, clawing through metal with ease, and the ghosts do nothing to stop it or save him from this Fate. Jaune Arc knows he'll never have that chance again, and regrets his choice that night more than anything else, if only because everything else could have been prevented.

[ _"We could go to Signal and make you a weapon together. I'm sure they wouldn't mind. There's plenty of spare parts they wouldn't miss."_ ]

"I would have liked that, Ruby," Jaune Arc whispers.

"I'm sorry."

It's his last words before his Fate finally catches up with him.

It's not Ruby.

/

* * *

/

(He'd promised he would wait for her. That he'd try, that he wouldn't give up on her. And he hadn't. But no matter how much he wanted to, he couldn't promise her success. When Ruby Rose finally arrives, five minutes later and just one minute too late, the Grimm Reaper already has him, and Jaune Arc has left Ruby Rose behind for the last time.)

/

* * *

/

there's a day when all hearts will be broken  
when a shadow will cast out the light  
and our eyes cry a million tears  
help wont arrive

there's a day when all courage collapses  
and our friends turn and leave us behind  
creatures of darkness will triumph  
the sun won't rise

when we've lost all hope  
and succumb to fear  
as the skies rain blood  
and the end draws near

i may fall  
but not like this-it won't be by your hand  
i may fall  
not this place, not today  
i may fall  
bring it all-it's not enough to take me down  
i may fall

there's a place where we'll stand outnumbered  
where the wolves and the soul-less will rise  
in the time of our final moments  
every dream dies

there's a place where our shields will lay shattered  
and the fear's all that's left in our hearts  
strength and our courage have run out  
we fall apart

when we lose our faith  
and forsake our friends  
when the moon is gone  
and we reach our end

there's a moment that changes a life when  
we do something that no one else can  
and the path that we've taken will lead us  
one final stand

there's a moment we make a decision  
not to cower and crash to the ground  
the moment we face our worst demons  
our courage found

when we stand with friends  
and we won't retreat  
as we stare down death  
then the taste is sweet

i may fall  
but not like this -it won't be by your hand  
i may fall  
not this place, not today  
i may fall  
bring it all-it's not enough to take me down  
i may fall

/

* * *

/

Author Notes:

And this is how the Dirge ends: after four different phases of coming terms- with facing the consequence of his actions, with confessing responsibility, with confronting the extension of his soul, and finally making peace with himself- Jaune's life of crime is finally over.

Tomorrow begins the epilogue arc 'Elysium.'


	49. Elysium 1

**Elysium**

Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY.

/

* * *

/

 _Missing someone gets easier every day because even though you are one day further from the last time you saw them, you are one day closer to the next time you will._

-Various

/

* * *

/

Ruby Rose is on an airship on her way to Beacon as the news plays. She's not as excited or happy as would have imagined on her first time at Beacon, the leading school for Heroes. She only barely pays attention to the news playing in the background.

"The attempted terrorist attack was led by the nefarious criminal Roman Torchwick and his notorious lieutenant, Justin John," the news announcer claimed, "neither of whom can avoid justice any longer. These malevolent criminals were working with the terrorist group the White Fang, whose anti-human radicalism was responsible for the recent crime wave of the last few months. Fortunately the partnership was stopped thanks to the brave sacrifices of a group of Huntresses, who foiled the plot at great personal cost. The Kingdoms of Remnant can only thank our Heroes for their moral fortitude and unwavering commitment to upholding the peace and laws of our Kingdoms at such personal cost."

"In other news, the upcoming Mistral Tournament is scheduled to begin on scheduled despite recent events. Before her recent disappearance from public, we interviewed tournament favorite Pyrrha Nikos on her choice to attend Beacon, and her thoughts on being teammates with former sponsor-" the announcer transitioned, blithely changing subject.

"They're not telling what really happened," Ruby said softly, turning to her companion and family member. It wasn't a buxom blonde- it was a tall old man with features like a bird. "They don't know that Jaune died for them."

[ _When you wake up again, it will all be over. Everything won't be alright- I won't be here- but at least you'll be alive. Promise._ ]

"People don't always remember the truth," Uncle Qrow responded, gently putting a hand on her head. "And that's for the best, Ruby." He gave her a kind rub. "People need to remember they have Hunters and Huntresses they can have faith in. They need to believe that there are heroes looking out for them."

"They do. There are," Ruby said. "But not all heroes are Hunters. Some of them never get the chance to be. That's not right."

Qrow smiled sadly. "I know," he said. "I wish it were otherwise, but I know. Just… remember that you don't have to be a Hero to make the choice to be a good person," he reminded. "You don't have to be strong to be good. And being strong doesn't make you good."

He'd been like that ever since the night of the Breach, when he'd been there in her stead but still hadn't come back with Jaune like he'd promised her when she'd finally managed to call his scroll and warn them of the train. Luckily for him, he wasn't an Arc. But she couldn't blame him for his melancholy- not when she was still dealing with worse.

"I want to make a World where the good can become strong," Ruby retorted none the less. "Where people have both a choice, and a chance. I want to give people that chance- that's the sort of Huntress I want to be."

"And how do you intend to do that, Ruby?" Uncle Qrow asked.

Ruby considered. To give a chance to those with a choice. To give a choice to those who didn't have the strength to take a chance. To not just protect the weak, but to make them strong. Was there a way…?

"I think… I'll help people to make their own Weapons," she said. "Not everyone. Not if they don't deserve it. But if they do, but can't or don't know how- I'd teach and help them so that good people could stand up for themselves and then help others." She paused, and turned. "Does that make sense?"

Uncle Qrow smiled. "It does. I think that's a beautiful dream," he said sincerely. "Why don't tell your sister when we see her? I'm sure that would cheer her up."

When she sees her sister, Ruby doesn't know if it's possible to cheer up Yang. Her sister looks even worse than she feels.

/

* * *

/

i couldn't take it couldn't stand another minute  
couldn't bear another day without you in it  
all of the joy that I had known for my life  
was stripped away from me the minute that you died

to have you in my life was all i ever wanted  
but now without you I'm a soul forever haunted  
can't help but feel that i had taken you for granted  
no way in hell that i can ever comprehend this

i wasn't dreaming when they told me you were gone  
i was wide awake and feeling that they had to be wrong  
how could you leave me when you swore that you would stay  
now i'm trapped inside a nightmare every single fucking day

it's like a movie but there's not a happy ending  
every scene fades black and there's no pretending  
this little fairy tale doesn't seem to end well  
there's no knight in shining armor who will wake me from the spell

/

* * *

/

 _There's a song she remembers, a phantom melody she first heard long ago but which has been haunting her ever since the Breach-That-Wasn't. Ghastly words just barely audible in the background, hovering like a whiff of incense in her own mind, every time she tries to remember. Every time she dreams of finding Jaune soon enough, and every time she remembers finding the body instead._

 _It used to make her think of Mother. Now it comes to mind every time she thinks of Jaune. It's always made her sad, but she's never felt so wrong. A feeling of nails on chalkboard, the sheer wrongness of it all. Jaune succeeded, but she failed, and what does it matter if she survived if her heart feels like its been stabbed?_

 _It shouldn't be this way. It shouldn't have ended like this. But for the life of her she can't remember why not._

/

* * *

/

Author Notes:

For those who didn't realize it: the lyrics in the previous chapter(s) have been 'I May Fall' from the RWBY soundtrack. The lyrics in 'Elysium' are from the song 'Red Like Roses 2.' Also part of the RWBY soundtrack.


	50. Elysium 2

**Elysium**

Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY.

/

* * *

/

 _Missing someone gets easier every day because even though you are one day further from the last time you saw them, you are one day closer to the next time you will._

-Various

/

* * *

/

Ruby enters the room just as a girl dressed in white leaves, carrying a box stamped with the emblem of a snowflake. The white-haired girl, no older than her, gives a polite nod and walks away, leaving Ruby to see what remains inside.

Yang is the only thing alive in a room big enough for four.

She sits beneath a hanging bed that has been untouched long enough to gather dust. Yang's corner is a slovenly mess- messy at the best of times, utterly unbecoming of a Team Leader, but without even that reason to care now. The other half of the room is immaculately clean and heart-breakingly empty. Nothing remains of the once meticulously ordered boxes and Spartan tidiness and personal effects that had been the hallmark of half of her sister's team. Everything had been taken and reclaimed by their families.

[ _The Kingdoms of Remnant can only thank our heroes for their moral fortitude and unwavering commitment to upholding the peace and laws of our Kingdoms at such personal cost._ ]

(The platitudes echo in Ruby's mind like the form letter of official condolences they are.)

Yang is quiet, too quiet, staring off into nothingness. It isn't until Ruby awkwardly coughs that Yang notices her sister is there.

In a flash the old Yang is back, cheer overflowing. "Sis!" Yang greets, (fake) warmth abounding. "You're here!" It's the smile she's worn every time she doesn't want Ruby to worry, which only makes Ruby worry more.

Yang isn't the only one who knows how to fake that she's not hurting. "Yang!" she returns. "You're looking… well," she said with an awkward smile.

"Not a scratch still on me," Yang boasts. "Didn't even get to take help take down the moles here in Beacon. It's a shame about the statue out front, but I missed a totally sweet fight. Just a bit bored. Between being assigned to bed rest and, well," she shrugs helplessly.

 _Here_. An empty room filled with a semester of memories and vanished friends that Ruby was and never would be a part of. Fights and laughter and squabbling and make up until it broke apart and had never quite fixed until it left Yang the sole survivor of a once-promising team of Huntresses.

Ruby can't bear to say anything, can't lie about being alright like Jaune did, can't fake false cheer any longer, and so sits beside her sister and hugs her and tries not to sniffle. Yang returns the hug, thinking she wants comfort, but soon it's Yang who is sniffling and Ruby who is holding her close. Ruby cries first because she knows Yang wants to, and Yang breaks down because Ruby is willing to, and in the end they're both crying and grieving because good friends and better people are gone and the World seems too intent on keeping on moving and spinning to stop and care.

It continues as long as it needs to, but not forever. They settle down, giving each other refuge as only sisters can. "It's alright to cry," Ruby says, a bit late as she wipes tears from her own eyes. "How are you doing, Yang?" she asks, concerned.

"Terrible," he sister says, honestly this time.

"I'm thinking of quitting being a Huntress."

/

* * *

/

i know you didn't plan this  
you tried to do what's right  
but in the middle of this madness  
i'm the one you left to win this fight

red like roses  
fills my head with dreams and finds me  
always closer  
to the emptiness and sadness  
that has come to take the place of you

i know you're broken down by anger and by sadness  
you feel I left you in a world that's full of madness  
wish i could talk to you if only for a minute  
make you understand the reasons why i did it

i wanna tell you that you're all that ever mattered  
want you to know that for eternity i'm shattered  
i tried so hard just to protect you but i failed to  
and in a prison of abandonment i've jailed you

i never planned that i would leave you there alone  
i was sure that i would see you when i made it back home  
and all the times I swore that it would be okay  
now i'm nothing but a liar and you're thrown into the fray

/

* * *

/

 _That's... This sensation._

 _The feeling she couldn't put a finger on is found. This song. It's not_ _quite_ _the right song- not for Jaune._

 _He was gone, yes. Part of her still doesn't believe it, yes. She'd wanted a friend for so long, hoped so hard, and been so sure that she would, that there really did feel like there was a Jaune-shaped hole cut in her heart. She misses him, yes._

 _But he'd never gone back on his word to her. He'd never made her fight. He'd done almost everything he could to keep her out of the fight, until the one time he'd had faith and she'd convinced him to give her a chance. And even though he'd left her behind so many times, he'd never, ever, abandoned her or left her locked away._

 _He'd given her the key. And then she'd- but then he'd-_

/

* * *

/

Author Notes:

Fun Fact: this entire story was planned around RWBY music. I'm a fan of the music- I listen to it for background noise during work- but it's especially good how you can use them to reinforce the themes of a story and guide impressions.

"I May Fall" was the the song this fic was built around- so much so that when I used and referenced music in Common Criminal Finale, I was worried I had spoiled the whole story for sharp observers. Fortunately it seems that everyone took them at face value, rather than look up the lyrics for foreshadowing. In fact, no one ever mentioned the song excepts at all, even though they were spread across every arc. I'm not even sure most people recognized them as RWBY songs. Thought it was bad poetry, perhaps?


	51. Elysium 3

**Elysium**

Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY.

/

* * *

/

 _Missing someone gets easier every day because even though you are one day further from the last time you saw them, you are one day closer to the next time you will._

-Various

/

* * *

/

"I'm thinking of quitting being a Huntress."

Ruby is shocked. Yang explains.

"I'm the only one left, even though I was the leader. I was responsible for them, and I- I failed. It's just… it's hard to believe they're all gone."

"Blake was first, disappeared after that stupid fight. We tried looking for her, we really did, but then-" she rubbed her red eyes, refusing to cry again. "I promised myself I wouldn't quit, wouldn't give up on her until I found her, dead or alive. But we couldn't find her at all. And that's worse, in a way- not knowing how it ends, not sure if it's stupid to hope or not."

Yang sighed, dispirited. "In the end, it didn't matter. I still couldn't find her, and so I'm a liar as well as a bad friend and a terrible leader, and I almost failed as a sister too."

"Yang…" Ruby comforted, squeezing her softly.

Ruby tried to reject that, tried to refute so many things with a single compassionate assurance. That it wasn't the end, wasn't too late to keep on trying, that just because friends were lost didn't mean she was a bad leader, or a bad friend, and that Yang was an amazing sister. She wanted to say all that, but could only manage one word that couldn't begin to encompass all that.

Yang gave her a grateful smile none the less.

"When you had disappeared, I was terrified. I felt so bad for asking Uncle Qrow to help, for letting you come along when he suggested it. I knew you were strong, but when you disappeared- I wouldn't have been able to forgive myself if something had happened to you." She gave Ruby a squeeze, glad she was there and unharmed. Glad to have been there when Ruby made the call, showing herself better than alive and warning them of what was to come.

"But then, the train- I don't think I can take that again. Deal with that sort of fear and worry again. Not after a total party wipe because I wasn't good enough."

(One KIA, soon to be officially and publicly buried with tributes and honors. One still MIA, which everyone knows really means dead but no one can find the body. One WIA, badly enough that her body would be in a wheelchair for the rest of her life. Even if she'd vowed that she wouldn't let it stop her ambitions, how could she keep on being a Huntress? She couldn't. It was the same form letter for all of them- The Kingdoms of Remnant can only thank….)

"At least you lived," Ruby said. "Someone saved you." Uncle Qrow had refused to speak on the fate of her sister until they found the blond girl sleeping in the bullhead. She wouldn't wake up until well after they'd returned to Vale, and when she had it had been with no memory of how she got there or who had moved her.

"Yeah. Someone did," Yang said softly, but there was no gratitude in her voice. "And I'm going to spend my new free time trying to find them, thank them, and then ask why they didn't choose to save anyone else if they had that much power and the chance to save me. And if I don't like the answer-"

She clenched a fist, eyes not red from tears anymore. If she didn't like the answer- and she couldn't think of an answer she would like- they'd _burn_.

Ruby was concerned, but trusted Yang. "If you say so. It's just… I'd like it if there was someone I knew here when I come to Beacon," she admitted.

Yang froze. "You… still intend to become a Huntress?" she asked. "After all this?"

After everything that had gone wrong? After everything that had changed? After her own failed promise?

"Ruby," Yang said, utterly serious and grabbing her tiny sister by the arms as if to shake some sense into her. "If you've ever loved me- if you've ever loved Mom- if you've ever cared for your friend, and if you ever believed any of us cared for _you_ \- **_don't_** _._ "

Yang looked at her sister, desperate and afraid.

"Yang, I-"

"Please, Ruby," Yang begged. "Give me your word. You can do anything else- be a cop, a doctor, make weapons for a living. Just not this."

"Yang-"

"Promise me you won't become a Huntress."

"I-"

/

* * *

/

this bedtime story ends with misery ever after  
the pages are torn and there's no final chapter  
i didn't have a choice I did what I had to do  
i made a sacrifice but forced a bigger sacrifice on you

i know you've lived a nightmare  
i caused you so much pain  
but baby please don't do what i did  
i don't want you to waste your life in vain

/

* * *

/

Author Notes:

1 Common Criminal Jaune = 1 Team PWBY = 4 Huntresses = Countless innocent lives saved.

By the math, I'd say this story has a happier end than not, wouldn't you?

Speaking of happier things, I've more or less decided on my next project. No timeline or date expected- probably next year if ever- but it's passed the Outline phase, and the beta-to-be likes. I believe the exact words were 'i think it was beautiful, dark too... perefeeeeect.'

Keep an eye for something special this evening.


	52. Lethean Field

**Elysium**

Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY.

/

* * *

/

 _Missing someone gets easier every day because even though you are one day further from the last time you saw them, you are one day closer to the next time you will._

-Various

/

* * *

/

i couldn't take it couldn't stand another minute  
couldn't bear another day without you in it  
all of the joy that I had known for my life  
was stripped away from me the minute that you died

to have you in my life was all i ever wanted  
but now without you I'm a soul forever haunted  
can't help but feel that i had taken you for granted  
no way in hell that i can ever comprehend this

i wasn't dreaming when they told me you were gone  
i was wide awake and feeling that they had to be wrong  
how could you leave me when you swore that you would stay  
now i'm trapped inside a nightmare every single fucking day

it's like a movie but there's not a happy ending  
every scene fades black and there's no pretending  
this little fairy tale doesn't seem to end well  
theres no knight in shining armor who will wake me from the spell

i know you didn't plan this  
you tried to do what's right  
but in the middle of this madness  
i'm the one you left to win this fight

red like roses  
fills my head with dreams and finds me  
always closer  
to the emptiness and sadness  
that has come to take the place of you

i know you're broken down by anger and by sadness  
you feel I left you in a world that's full of madness  
wish i could talk to you if only for a minute  
make you understand the reasons why i did it

i wanna tell you that you're all that ever mattered  
want you to know that for eternity i'm shattered  
i tried so hard just to protect you but i failed to  
and in a prison of abandonment i've jailed you

i never planned that i would leave you there alone  
i was sure that i would see you when i made it back home  
and all the times I swore that it would be okay  
now i'm nothing but a liar and you're thrown into the fray

this bedtime story ends with misery ever after  
the pages are torn and there's no final chapter  
i didn't have a choice I did what I had to do  
i made a sacrifice but forced a bigger sacrifice on you

i know you've lived a nightmare  
i caused you so much pain  
but baby please don't do what i did  
i don't want you to waste your life in vain

/

* * *

/

 _Take. That. Back._

 _If she were a faunus, she'd snarl and show her fangs no matter how small. If she had her baby, she'd whip out Crescent Rose in a flash. As it is, silver eyes harden with resolve and certainty. Whatever was left in the song is irrelevant. There's no point in letting it finish._

 _Jaune did **not** die in vain._

 _He'd spent his life badly, but in the end he spent it saving people- even himself, in a sense. And people mattered- again, even himself. But he didn't sacrifice himself because he had to- he had stopped hiding behind an excuse of inability or lack of alternatives- but because he **chose** to. That might be lamentable, she might mourn, but it's not something that would throw her into life-shattering despair._

 _Not anymore. Not when she would have made the same choice herself. This song, it may have been true for her once, when she was a little girl and her world revolved her Mother, but it's not now. She's a big girl now. Jaune is not, was not, and never would have been the defining facet of her life. That wasn't what he was to her._

 _That's not Jaune, in any sense. That's not the boy who never promised her it would be alright, but who let her free to try and do so herself. That's not her, not anymore. There's no reason to remember the rest of the haunting lyrics. Those words don't bind or define her- not anymore._

 _This song? It's worse than not quite right._

 _It's outright **wrong**.  
_

/

* * *

/

"I won't do that, Yang."

/

* * *

/

Author Notes:

(It's alright to hope, you know.)


	53. Elysium 5

**Elysium**

Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY.

/

* * *

/

 _Missing someone gets easier every day because even though you are one day further from the last time you saw them, you are one day closer to the next time you will._

-Various

/

* * *

/

"I won't do that, Yang."

It's the wrong answer if she wanted to calm Yang down. It's the right answer if she wants to live to be shaken violently by the bigger girl.

"After what happened to us? After what almost happened to you? Don't tell me you forgot!"

Ruby shook her head. "I do remember- I remember what's important," she claimed, looking Yang in the eye. "I remember that I had people looking out for me even in the worst circumstances. I remember that there were good people trapped in bad places because they didn't think they had a choice. I remember that that I lost a friend on that train too because he didn't think he had a chance, but tried to do the right thing on his own anyway."

 ** _[_** _They were- she was- too late. Broke her promise, missed her chance, soon but not soon enough, because by the time she gets there Uncle Qrow has already closed the boy's eyes. They can't even take his body back with them because she and Uncle Qrow struggle to carry the two bodies of Yang's team as it is (one dead and one wounded, a girl she's never met before and might once have made friends with but will probably never see again). They make it back to the bullhead in an unmemorable silence, where Yang's safety is the first good news since the train suddenly stopped without warning and allowed her to catch up. **]**_

 ** _[If I could give you one more chance, would you take up my promise?]_**

Ruby looked at her sister, undaunted by the memory of failure.

"I have a choice, a chance, to be a Huntress and try to make the world a better place. I am going to make the most of them- and I'm not going to throw that away just because I may fall. Not like this. Not when so many people never get that opportunity."

Yang wanted to stop her- wanted to forbid her and keep her safe and out of trouble- but she knew her sister well enough to know it wouldn't work. In that, she understood her sister better than Jaune Arc ever had.

Ruby stood and stepped forward, before turning towards Yang.

"I am going to go to Beacon, and I will become a Hero," Ruby vowed. "For myself. For Mom, and you, and the rest of our family. For Remnant. And for everyone who couldn't. Even if they things seem bad now, I can still make things better in the future. Make them be alright some day. I _want_ to do the right thing, Yang," she asserted with peerless conviction, but ended with a soft smile.

"But I'd really like you to be there with me when I try."

She hoped she would. Hoped her sister hadn't changed from the nice girl she knew, the sister she loved, simply because things had changed so much. Hoped that neither one of them would have to be alone. Hoped against hope that someone would finally believe in her, before it really was too late. _Hoped_ , despite hope being dashed so many times and lost to the darkness and nowhere to be seen and no good reason to be believed.

No reason except faith, in people and in promises.

Yang said nothing, until she muttered her response.

"Sorry. Two year break," she apologized.

"Huh?" said Ruby, not understanding.

"Two years," Yang repeated. "That's how long a break I'll take. You go back to Signal, finish it normally, prepare to show the world that you're the bees' knees. I'll be out and about, clearing my head and tidying up loose ends. And when you graduate- when you get to Beacon like I know you will- I'll come back with a Yang, got it?" she said, prompting a weak smile from both of them.

It was a bad joke, the worst, and her weakest pun of last resort. But if she could make it, if she could smile, the maybe one day she would laugh again and then there'd be a chance she really would be alright. A chance. Not a promise, not a guarantee, but a something as good as either.

"First years teammates together, promise?" Ruby asked, holding out her hand in a tiny fist but her heart shining in satisfaction and a sense of completion.

Yang bumped her fist in return. "Promise," she said. "Don't be thinking you can come here early just because you helped saved the day, you hear?"

Ruby does promise, and will keep her word, even if she doesn't mention that she's already refused Ozpin's offer. It's not completely honest, but it's not a lie either. Even if she doesn't want to tell her sister, she already has a reason to stay at Signal a little while longer.

After the events of that night, after being captured and losing Crescent Rose and Jaune and other things since, she still has her own soul to re-forge.

It's not her time to be in this place of heroes. Not yet.

/

* * *

/

 _When Ruby leaves, no ghosts born of guilt or memories or unfilled promises haunt her. No spirit or soul or anyone tries to stop her. The only one who might have- the only one she would have stayed for- won't be found here. And that's alright._

 _As she crosses over the water that surrounds her promised place, to return to the land where she lives, she swears she hears the wind whisper to her one more time._

 _ **[Remember the words, all of the words, for these are your Words and this is the song of Promise you share.]**_

/

* * *

/

there's a day when all hearts will be broken  
when a shadow will cast out the light  
and our eyes cry a million tears  
help won't arrive

there's a day when all courage collapses  
and our friends turn and leave us behind  
creatures of darkness will triumph  
the sun won't rise

when we've lost all hope  
and succumb to fear  
as the skies rain blood  
and the end draws near

i may fall  
but not like this-it won't be by your hand  
i may fall  
not this place, not today  
i may fall  
bring it all-it's not enough to take me down  
i may fall

there's a place where we'll stand outnumbered  
where the wolves and the soul-less will rise  
in the time of our final moments  
every dream dies

there's a place where our shields will lay shattered  
and the fear's all that's left in our hearts  
strength and our courage have run out  
we fall apart

when we lose our faith  
and forsake our friends  
when the moon is gone  
and we reach our end

there's a moment that changes a life when  
we do something that no one else can  
and the path that we've taken will lead us  
one final stand

there's a moment we make a decision  
not to cower and crash to the ground  
the moment we face our worst demons  
our courage found

when we stand with friends  
and we won't retreat  
as we stare down death  
then the taste is sweet

i may fall  
but not like this -it won't be by your hand  
i may fall  
not this place, not today  
i may fall  
bring it all-it's not enough to take me down  
i may fall

/

* * *

/

One may fall, and easily, when alone.

He might have fallen- but he didn't. Not like he could have. Not to fear and despair and ghosts of responsibility.

She might have fallen- but she didn't. Not like she could have. Not to guilt and grief and memories of failure.

They might have fallen- but they didn't- and for the same reason. Not because of what they faced when they were together, but what they remembered when they were not.

That's why this is their song-not romantically, but shared in their hearts none the less. This is what they meant to each other, the sort of promise they had.

 _ **I**_ may fall.

I _**may**_ fall.

But _we_ **won't.**

(Not like they could have.)

/

* * *

/

Author Notes:

(Still) not the end.


	54. Leaving Elysium

**Elysium**

Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY.

/

* * *

/

 _Missing someone gets easier every day because even though you are one day further from the last time you saw them, you are one day closer to the next time you will._

-Various

/

* * *

/

 _As she rides her ship back to home, a lone passenger watching the land come closer, Ruby Rose hums a different song, a new one._

 _Not a song to share, even if it too is a promise, but one that is uniquely hers. A replacement for that one that was simply wrong, another song that's stuck in her mind like a whiff of incense. She may forget it from time to time- distracted by friendly family or family friends- but it will be a part of her for as long as memories of Jaune's death haunt her_

 _To say she'd been willing to die for him would have to been to trivialize it. Dying was easy. Anyone could do it- eventually, everyone did do it. Even a common criminal could die for strangers, in the right circumstances. But living- living with uncertainty, when shadows were large and hope nowhere to be seen- living was hard. Living a good life was even harder, which is why so many people didn't._

 _But Jaune was more than that, to him and to her. More than a common criminal who'd given up on hope and heroes, and she had promised she was going to prove him wrong. Show him something better._

 _Sure, this bloody world of Remnant didn't promise to give you perfect fairy tale ending you thought you wanted just because you tried to make the right choices. It wouldn't guarantee that happy ending just because you took a chance. It expected you to keep trying no matter how many times you failed, no matter how far down you fell. You couldn't quit. You couldn't give up, no matter how dark or scared or lost you were. And even if you did all that, it wouldn't promise anything._

 _But as long as you are alive, as long as you keep moving forward, you still have every chance to make the best choices you can, even if the ending you reach is as bitter as sweet. But that's alright. Life continues, and you can still make the future better as long as you're alive. Even if you fail some promises, there are some you can still try to keep later than expected._

 _Even Jaune hadn't given up in the end. And if even Jaune, a common criminal, could try to do the right thing and keep his word, how could an aspiring Huntress do any less? Just because her heart still hurt- just because she missed and regretted and everything- didn't mean she'd stop moving forward. For the same reasons she wouldn't have done absolutely anything to have saved him, she wouldn't let the memory of his death be the reason to fall from her path._

 _Not because she didn't care about him, not because she wouldn't do anything for him, but because she cares that much. Because betraying her ideals would be betraying Jaune, someone who had lost sight of his and had needed to rely on her and hers. Falling now because of him would be failing him, and Ruby Rose wasn't the sort to give up on her friends._

 _She wouldn't be able to do that if she gave in to despair like she once had. She'd lived a lonely life with only family until a brief and chance friendship had helped her bloom. Doing so again wouldn't prove anything- she had to do something else if she was going to prove it was never too late to try and demonstrate what of character and heroism was about. She had always intended to show him what true strength meant in practice._

 _She was going to live a good life. And if he wasn't going to be there to do it with her, she'd have to pick up the slack and live twice as well for him. That's what he meant to her. Because he- because she-_

[It's going to be alright, Jaune.]

[Everything won't be alright- I won't be here- but at least you'll be alive.]

 _Because they'd promised, and even if it wasn't perfect and she wasn't able to walk away with the fairy tale happy ending she'd had in mind, Arcs weren't the only ones who could keep their Word. Even if it's just a bit off- even if it's not quite right- even if it still lingers like a hint of incense- it's good enough for now._

 _She'll mourn. She'll remember. And when she does, when she can remember and smile and know she kept her word, it really will be alright._

 _Until then, she'll live._

["I'll show you, Jaune," Ruby promises with a smile, and makes the right choice.]

/

* * *

/

"Wings"

.

One life is not a long time

When you're waiting

For a small sign

Patience is hard to find

.

Shadows seem to fill your life

Don't be disappointed

Don't let your heartbreak

Don't spend another minute

In this way

.

Its okay,

.

Dry your eyes now baby

Broken wings won't hold you down

You'll take flight soon baby

You'll be lifted up and you'll be there

.

Twelve hours is a long night

When your searching

With no hope in sight

Aimless on the inside

And the damage

Makes you want to hide

.

I know that it seems pointless

I know that it feels fake

I know you can't stand the thought

Of being strayed

.

One more day,

.

Dry your eyes now baby

Broken wings won't hold you down

You'll take flight soon baby

You'll be lifted up and you'll be there

/

* * *

/

 _End Elysium_

/

* * *

/

Author Notes:

The song is 'Wings', the ending song of RWBY Season 1. I highly recommend you listen to it. Like, now. And if/when you ever reread this chapter.

And... that's a wrap of Ruby's epilogue arc! A structurally sound, bitter-sweet conclusion for Ruby's and Team RWBY's side of the story. There's a little bit more- some tidying up of loose ends which you may or may not have forgotten, and a post-mortem authorial analysis of the story as a whole-but if you don't care about that sort of thing, or can't think of anything unresolved, or are just afraid of what I might do... well, now's the perfect chance chance to quit. I'll be offline for the rest of the week, so you can choose whether it's worth the chance of coming back. And if you don't-

Thank you for your time, and your patronage for this story. Please, share your thoughts- on this arc, on the story as a whole, and how the story re-reads with the advantage of hindsight. Still as hopeless and depressing as you remember? Or can you see why I ultimately consider it an optimistic story, even though hope was so hard to find?

Also, feel free to ask any questions. I'll try and do a final Q&A in the post-mortem for anything not already answered by then.


	55. Moirai 1

**Moirai**

Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY.

/

* * *

/

 _"Justice and judgement lie often a world apart."_  
\- Emmeline Pankhurst"

/

* * *

/

In the highest tower, even as two sisters mourned and grieved, three men considered the aftermath for much of the day and well into the night. They weren't all thin, they weren't all ugly, but they were all old- or at least old enough to make the decisions they did.

"The Queen's gone off the board," Ozpin said. "No sign of her, and I don't expect any for awhile."

"At least we took her best pieces," Qrow said. "It's a shame we couldn't get her in the same gambit."

"I'll keep those two locked away safely and out of sight," Ironwood assured. "Torchwick as well, if you want," he offered

Ozpin narrowed his eyes. "I don't," he stated. "I'm not the only headmaster whose student he's killed. I want him in court. I want him in jail. I want every crime he's committed brought to light, publicly." He wanted justice, even if he couldn't always have it. He sighed, weary and bitter.

"But perhaps it is for the best. Keeping his capture a secret works to our advantage against the Conspiracy. We were lucky enough that Qrow managed to catch him as he attempted to flee."

"It was not difficult," Qrow demurred. "Without a weapon, he had no chance in a fight." Hence why the master criminal had tried to flee, rather than stay holed up in that death-trap of a train.

"Continue the cover-up, Ironwood," Ozpin directed. "Use whatever resources you need to keep it a secret. If he talks- if he's willing to give us something that could uproot our conspirators- perhaps then he can have his day in court. Until then, throw him into the deepest, darkest pit you can, somewhere no one will ever find him."

His vehemence was impressive, even if not unexpected to Qrow. Ironwood nodded has assent.

"I'm surprised he hasn't tried to strike a deal," Ozpin admitted once the General had. No one had expected the master criminal to confess to his sins- but even so, he'd been remarkably close-lipped.

"I'm not sure we could get him for murder, and he knows it," Ironwood returned. "For all the burglaries we could pin on him, we have little evidence that he killed either of the students. Nothing that we could use to lock him up somewhere he couldn't get out of. The Confession alone isn't solid legal evidence- the author's mental instability was obvious."

Qrow bobbed his head in agreement. "It may not all be true, either. Miss Belladonna's body has yet to be found, which is odd for the White Fang's usual practice of making an example of traitors," he pointed out. "She is technically still missing, only presumed dead."

Ozpin narrowed his eyes again, at Qrow this time. "Do you happen to have any intelligence to support this theory, Qrow?" he asked. "Perhaps something that was not recorded in the confession?"

"I will have my niece look into it," Qrow replied. "Discretely, of course."

Ozpin raised an eyebrow. He knew of the niece in mind, and knew discretion wasn't her strong point.

Qrow knew it too. "Discrete in the sense of not giving her false hope," he clarified. "As far as she will know, she will be investigating the White Fang. It will help her find closure if the worst has come to pass."

Ozpin leaned forward. "Discretion and closure are all well and good," he said, "but we need answers- the Confession mentions that the conspirators plan only started with the Breach. We need to know more- what the next phase what, what their revolution was supposed to accomplish. A Faunus rebellion would only have been the means to another end. The confession is too vague."

"I do not believe he knew," Qrow said. "He was just beginning to enter into the conspirator's circle."

Ironwood learned forward as well. "Perhaps. Perhaps not. If only we had a witness we could question on both these fronts," he suggested, less subtly than Ozpin. "Someone who could pressed for any details left out of the Confession."

"You do. You have Torchwick," Qrow reminded.

"He's not talking," Ironwood admitted. But Ironwood didn't look surprised, or disappointed, or even down.

He looked at Qrow instead.

/

* * *

/

Author Notes:

This just in- coming next, the secret for building suspense! Stay tuned for more!


	56. Moirai 2

**Moirai**

Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY.

/

* * *

/

 _"Justice and judgement lie often a world apart."_  
\- Emmeline Pankhurst

/

* * *

/

"If only we had someone else," Ironwood continued. "Someone who had run out of chances, but was truly repentant. I'm sure a self-confessed criminal would cooperate in exchange for a reduction in sentence," he suggested.

"Impossible," Qrow said categorically. "Jaune Arc is dead. I saw his body myself, and brought back his Confession and weapon as proof." Jaune's own scroll, and the shards of the cheap crappy cleaver that really did have Jaune Arc's own blood on it.

Ozpin and Ironwood exchanged looks. A broken weapon was the ultimate proof of a fallen Hero. It was what was brought back when a Hunter couldn't come back with his shield or on it, so to speak. The unquestionable symbol that one's soul was not only gone, but shattered beyond repair.

"It's quite fortunate that you were there to find those," General Ironwood opined. "Considering that my forces, when they were able to secure the area, weren't able to find the body at all."

"It was quite unfortunate," Qrow disagreed. "I'm sure the late Arcs would have preferred a proper burial for their son when his time came."

"Yes, truly a tragedy it had to be an empty casket going into the grave," Ironwood agreed dryly. "No matter how bloody, or mauled, or half eaten it is, there is closure with a corpse. I'm sure his friends and family would have preferred the alternative." Ironwood leaned forward with a strange glimmer in his eye.

"No false hope then."

"I wouldn't call it false hope," Qrow demurred. "His family is already dead, and Ruby has been heartbroken these last few days."

He knew Ozpin was watching intently even as the headmaster nonchalantly sipped from his coffee. That was their old game- the blunt war hound stirring the bush, seeing what flew out for the real Hunter hiding behind the mug, watching from behind glasses that hid true eyes oh so well…

"Ms. Rose was truly distraught that Mr. Arc was not recovered when I spoke to her," Ozpin ultimately admitted. "Grief like that can only be faked by the most capable of actors."

"Which my niece is not," Qrow reminded.

"Hmm," Ozpin agreed as he sipped from his mug. That much most certainly was true.

"I just find it strange," Ironwood resumed, "that we weren't able to find even scraps among the carrion- and yet that suit of his would have been very distinctive amongst the remains of the White Fang uniforms we found."

"I imagine it all looks the same in the belly of the Grimm," Qrow suggested. "It was some time before your men were able to secure the area."

Ironwood narrowed his eyes. Qrow met his gaze evenly.

It was up to Ozpin to play mediator.

/

* * *

/

Author Notes:

As promised, the secret to building even more suspense: by 'Ozpin plays mediator' I mean 'Ozpin plays cliffhanger troll, please try again tomorrow.'


	57. Moirai 3

**Moirai**

Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY.

/

* * *

/

 _"Justice and judgement lie often a world apart."_  
\- Emmeline Pankhurst

/

* * *

/

"Changing subject," Ozpin began. "James, did you know that that Qrow recently made contact with the Jade Dragon Clan?"

"The Jade Dragon Clan?" Ironwood asked politely. "The Clan famous for hunters and healers specializing in aura? You have a student from them, don't you?"

"Indeed," Ozpin said. "Lie Ren is a promising student, though I have yet to see him manifest the sort of semblance occasionally found in his blood line."

"Oh? What is that?" Ironwood asked, even though he already knew the answer. And Qrow knew he knew. And he knew that Qrow knew he knew. And they both knew that Ozpin knew they both knew.

"It's said that some members of the Lie Clan manifest rare semblances with the ability to affect other people's spirits," Ozpin revealed. "It varies from person to person, I'm told, but the effects are potent. Binding someone's unlocked aura, sealing their semblance… or touching their minds directly. Memories can be altered, transferred, even hidden from the minds of those who hold them."

"In moderation, those skills can be potent medicines for mental and spiritual health," Qrow said. "I was concerned for the trauma my niece endured, and wished to make preparations in case they were needed. The Lie's owed me a favor," he said with total honesty.

For using underworld connections to get the young Lie Ren a well-paying job on short notice, a job that he was underage for and was technically illegal, but which had paid off in so many ways…

"Yes, indeed," Ozpin said. "It's always good to see people who choose to honor their debts when they have the chance. I understand the Lie's had old ties to the Arc family as well. It was-" Ozpin paused, and feigned confusion.

"I'm sorry, Qrow, but **_which_ ** niece did you say you called them on behalf of?"

Because they sure hadn't come to Beacon to treat Yang Xiao Long.

/

* * *

/

[ _"They're not telling what really happened," Ruby said softly, turning to her companion and family member. It wasn't a buxom blonde- it was a tall old man with features like a bird. "They don't know that Jaune died for them."_ ]

[ _"People don't always remember the truth," Uncle Qrow responded, gently putting a hand on her head. "And that's for the best, Ruby."_ ]

/

* * *

/

Author Notes:

*Grabs popcorn and awaits response*

If your jaw dropped at the end, you cussed in any way, or gave any verbal reaction when you put it together... fess up. I just wish I could see the expression on your face after reading this.


	58. Moirai Consensus

**Moirai**

Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY.

/

* * *

/

 _"Justice and judgement lie often a world apart."_  
\- Emmeline Pankhurst

/

* * *

/

Ironwood stood up and slammed his hands on the table, no longer content to draw this thread out. The force of the blow cracked the table.

"Let's stop beating around the bush," he said, taking his measure of the situation. "My sources tell me Qrow's school just gained a new student- with a teacher's sponsorship, no less. Why don't we talk to him directly, and see what _he_ remembers? I'm sure Penny would-"

There's the sound of unfolding metal as the crow bared its single talon, a blade as capable of cutting through iron as easily as wood splitting what was left of the table. James didn't flinch. Ozpin didn't stand. Qrow barely seemed to move.

"Don't," he warned, as serious as the grave. "Jaune Arc is gone and watched over by family- leave those spirits undisturbed. No matter how hard you look into my students, no matter how hard you try, you won't find anything that I do not already know. If I find something important enough to share, I will tell you. I will even give my word, if you like. But if you press this, you will find my choice on this matter has already been made."

He was deadly serious- so much so that it would be hard to believe he was bluffing. The only sort of assurance, or threat, that might have been stronger would have been the word of an Arc- but there were no more Arcs around to make such promises anymore, were there?

(It's not a question with a chance of being wrong. Not really.)

Ironwood didn't back down, didn't retreat, so much as he agreed to the Reaper's terms.

"Very well," he agreed with a stiff nod, chin almost touching the blade at his throat. He extended his hand- but taking it would require Qrow to withdraw his talon.

Qrow kept his stance, and the broken table finally collapsed as the two men stared at each other.

It fell on Ozpin once again to play mediator.

"If- hypothetically speaking," Ozpin caveated needlessly, "Jaune Arc hadn't died, I imagine he would have made some dangerous enemies after what he did."

[ _The day he makes his move, it will be so remarkable that it will become legendary in the criminal underworld._ ]

[ _So, no doubt, will be his suffering if they ever get their hands on him._ ]

"Enemies that would try to take their revenge… and realize the implications of his survival on their secrets," Ironwood recognized. "If they knew what we suspect, we'd lose our only leads."

Ozpin nodded. "If he could not be brought in to custody secretly," he began, and Qrow gave the slightest shake of his head at that impossibility, "then perhaps it is for the best for everyone that he did not survive."

Perhaps it was for the best that Ruby Rose mourned for her friend. Best even for her. She might cry, she would grieve, but she'd never have her faith in virtue and redemption rocked as it would have been had Jaune Arc survived only to be locked away in some far away and forgotten place. Such an injustice would have challenged the young girl's faith in virtue and redemption, in the world, in a way that a single death wouldn't have. Perhaps it was best to let the young Huntress-to-be, someone who might not have done everything, but who most certainly would have given up anything, to save a friend... perhaps it was best to let her mourn and overcome the memory of failure instead.

Perhaps it was best for one common criminal in particular- who no matter how many lives he saved or how unique a criminal he had helped bring down, had still been a thug and a dust thief and a facilitator of terrorism and a murderer. Someone who not only would vengeful criminals despise, but that the long arm of the law would no doubt still try to seize. His attempt at redemption and repentance might have earned him a reduced sentence had he been brought in- but not a pardon, not forgiveness, not the freedom to live a better life.

Perhaps it was best even for the Kingdoms of Remnant, who had lost their chance at a common criminal, but hadn't lost a promising young Huntress who would have gone any distance, braved any danger, and stood up to any foe to help someone who not only needed it, but who she felt deserved it. No matter how far he was cast down, no matter the claim to a greater good, no matter who made that claim. So long as Jaune Arc lived, Ruby Rose would have tried to save him and bring him back into the light. Perhaps it was for the best for the Kingdoms of Remnant that they hadn't lost two desperately needed future heroes.

So perhaps it was for the best that Jaune Arc was nowhere to be found in the land of the living. That there was no young man who would respond to the name, or remember the crimes, or be forced to answer for another life's mistakes.

Perhaps it really was for the best, for everyone, that the Grimm Reaper- family she'd _said_ could help Jaune with whatever trouble he was having so long as he didn't give up- had reached him first.

(And in the end, isn't that was a promise is? A declaration or assurance that one will do a certain thing or that a particular thing will happen? So it hadn't been idle words- it had been a Word worth keeping. And sometimes, when you can't keep a promise on your own, it's alright to rely on friends and family to help keep it for you.)

It might not have been ideal- not a flawless victory, not the perfect ending anyone had in mind- but perhaps it was for the best anyway. You might even say it was alright.

"My thoughts exactly," Qrow agreed as his talon retracted. "There are chances not worth taking, and chances worth trying. Leave the matter to me. I will take responsibility for my students, and will prepare them for what is needed. If there are no objections?"

There were none. All three knew that the Reaper wasn't really offering a choice.

"Do so," Ozpin directed as if he was anyway, and Qrow took Ironwood's still-proffered hand to shake on it.

He wasn't surprised when Ironwood chose not to let go- used his superior strength to keep Qrow in place. Nor was he alarmed when Ozpin took the chance to lean over and put his hand over theirs, sealing the bargain.

"We have other avenues to investigate in the meantime- we must determine this plan. But remember something, Qrow," he said, and even though he wasn't surprised even Death would have paused as Ozpin's glasses tinged and the man's aura glimmered darkly. Qrow could feel the Headmaster's pressure from inside the General's hands, and even Ironwood's palm gave the slightest hint of nervous sweat.

"In two years your students, and the responsibility for their secrets, are _mine._ "

/

* * *

/

Author Notes:

Well, it's official. Jaune Arc is dead, folks. Even Ozpin agrees. And Ozpin would never lie, right? [/it's alright to hope][/or is it?][/I bet some of you cry by the end of the week]


	59. Moirai Stolen Verse

**Moirai**

Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY.

/

* * *

/

 _"Justice and judgement lie often a world apart."_  
\- Emmeline Pankhurst

/

* * *

/

 _Ruby's not the only one to hear songs of her soul that no one else would, to share something no one else could. Summer had too, before she passed away._ _It runs in the family._

 _Even if he can't- even if he's not heard the music of his own heart in the years since she passed- he hears a song now, as regretful as it is hopeful. Unlike Ruby, who left Beacon humming something not quite right, he remembers exactly why this perfect song hovers in his mind like incense._

 _Even if it was the cost he knew must be paid to take this chance, even if he has no regrets for the choice he made despite the lost trust and fallout to come, he'll never presume this to be his song. Never take comfort in the hope it was meant to give, never share it as it was meant to be. Its haunting words and melody mean little to him besides a minor melancholy and more guilt. It wasn't meant for him. Even if it was given freely, he can't help but feel he **stole** it._

 _It's not his song. It's not a song made to be held by any one person. It was something shared and to be shared, not hoarded in secret. It might not be the worst lie he's ever told, or the harshest deception, but watching family suffer, knowing that sharing comfort would only make it worse in the end, is always the hardest call to make._

 _Even if it was a cost gladly paid, even if there are no regrets, the guilt will weigh on him until he can finally give it back. But until he can, until it's safe to, he'll hold onto it- for as long as it takes._

 _Arcs aren't the only ones who can keep a promise._

/

* * *

/

"Forever"

.

You and I were in a dream

You'd follow close wherever I'd lead

My steps, you'd echo, on and on

You'd catch me, safe if ever I'd fall

Your hand in mine, we walked along

No hill too high, no road was too long

To stay with you, my only dream

To share your life, whatever it'd mean

.

I knew you'd have to go away

My love for you could not help you stay

You drifted off day by day

I cherished every breath that remained

In my arms, close to me

Your body broke, your soul was set free

You left this world, my treasured friend

That chapter closed, but love has no end

.

Farewell, my angel

You're with me always

Just close your eyes now

Next time we meet, it's forever

/

* * *

/

 _End Moirai_

/

* * *

/

Author Notes:

"Forever" is (another) song by Casey Lee Williams and Jeff Williams. IE, those people behind all the other RWBY music. If this song isn't in RWBY Season 3, I'll be shocked. It's RWBY in spirit, at least. And it was the perfect song to reflect this post-Jaune Arc.

(Damn that pun never gets old.)

Go listen to it- hell, go re-read Elysium and all of Moirai after listening to it.

But, a word of advice for the next chapter? Have a link to RWBY songs ready. Just youtube "RWBY Jeff Williams." You'll know which one to play when the time comes.


	60. Metempsychosis

**Metempsychosis**

Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY.

/

* * *

/

 _"Each night, when I go to sleep, I die. And the next morning, when I wake up, I am reborn."  
_ ― Mahatma Gandhi

/

* * *

/

 _"Ruby?" she hears. "Ruby, can you hear me? It's time to get up. It's alright to wake up now."_

 _Ruby does so in bed to the sound of Uncle Qrow's voice, and to Zwei's earnest licks. Rubbing sleep from her eyes and scratching absently at an itch at her chest, she catches a whiff of incense, something unidentifiable but eastern. A new fad of her Uncle's? Uncle Qrow is an excellent teacher, but a bit eccentric in his alternative health care beliefs._

 _"Uncle Qrow?" she yawns. "What time is it?" She feels refreshed, like she'd had a long nights sleep, but after being captured and seeing Jaune it wasn't until early morning that they had made it back to the bullhead-_

 _"It's late afternoon, Ruby."_

 _"I slept all day?" she wonders. She should be startled, but is strangely lethargic instead._

 _"It's late afternoon of the day after," Uncle Qrow elaborates. "Technically you've been asleep two days. You haven't woke once since the Breach That Wasn't."_

 _Her face scrunches and lets out a cute "Eeh?!" in surprise. That's- far longer than she's ever slept before! She didn't think it was possible! Where was the vigor that had seen her user her semblance to run that marathon from that jail to the doorstep of Vale barely stopping? What could have kept her asleep for so long? Where had her childish energy gone?_

 _(No she is no longer just a child, she is one who has seen a Grimm Night and survived, a warrior running wild through the darkness despite the fear and without a weapon only to emerge triumphant, her heart singing a song of-)_

 _"You had a hard day and pushed yourself far beyond your usual limits. It's only natural your body needed to rest. How do you feel?"_

 _"Great," she begins._

 _She's happy and confident and motivated to do all those important things she has planned, like an amazing dream in which she saved the day and proved something important and everything (well, not **everything** ) ended better than it could have because she came away with something golden, something more precious than dust. She's sad about Yang's team, she really is, and she already misses Crescent Rose terribly, but she's not ashamed to be relieved that she still has her Sister and her Uncle and now has a friend in Jaune who-_

 _(_ _But then the memories come flowing in. Memories of finding the engine room already open, comparatively clean considering the bloody mess outside it. Of finding what Uncle Qrow already found and tried to hide from her. Of the body laying against the far wall by the controls.)_

 ** _[_** _Of Jaune Arc, still wearing those stupid red glasses she'd never seen him without, still holding that stupid cheap crappy red cleaver you really could still see the blood on, after he used it to stab his own heart before monsters could savagely tear it from his chest. Suicide, Uncle Qrow tries to explain. The relatively painless alternative to the Grimm trying to get in. No one could blame him for that choice, but she can't believe it. It must have been the fall, it must have. She would never have believed it if she didn't remember seeing it herself. **]**_

 ** _[_** _They were- she was- too late. Broke her promise, went back on her word, missed her chance, soon but not soon enough, because by the time she gets there Uncle Qrow has already closed the boy's eyes. They can't even take his body back with them because she and Uncle Qrow struggle to carry the two bodies of Yang's team as it is (one dead and one wounded, a girl she's never met before and might once have made friends with but will probably never see again). They make it back to the bullhead in an unmemorable silence, where Yang's safety is the first good news since the train suddenly stopped without warning and allowed her to catch up. **]**_

 ** _[_** _Jaune is dead. Died waiting for her, just as he promised. Died before he went back on his word- or would it be died because he went back on his word?- even though she made the right choice and took her chance and tried as best she could. She failed. She can hardly believe it. She failed **him** , and that hurts more. **]**_

 _"Great," Ruby began. "But not really," she finishes morosely after the memories of the previous day return. She doesn't remember taking a single blow as she ran through throngs of Grimm, but it still feels like someone tore out a piece of her heart._

 _Uncle Qrow embraces her. "I'm sorry," he whispers. "I hope you can forgive me one day."_

[When you wake up again, it will all be over. Everything won't be alright- I won't be here- but at least you'll be alive. Promise.]

 _She smiles sadly and leans into him, not paying him any attention as he tightens just slightly as she shakes her head into his chest. In her mind, there's nothing to forgive. Jaune made his choice, because she'd missed her chance, but none of that was Uncle Qrow's fault. Uncle Qrow had been the one to take her out there to help. Uncle Qrow had tried to fight through the White Fang after she had called and told him and Yang how she had gotten free and who was responsible. Uncle Qrow had tried to do the right thing._

 _She could blame the World, but she'd already resolved to change it for the better anyway._

 _Jaune was- was almost- could have been- a great friend, but she'd already gone through the pain of thinking him dead twice before. Once at the docks and once in the alley. This time with the train is just a little bit more bitter-sweet than before, because this time she knows he really was a good person deep down. That's all. Really. The pain in her heart… it won't kill her. Not really. She's a big girl, the kind that still drinks milk, and big girls don't- big girls don't-_

 _Uncle Qrow hugs her again, ignoring any sniffles that leak out. He allowed her to compose herself, rather than encouraging her to let it out now. There would be time for sharing grief with family later._

 _"I know it's sudden, and I know you want to re-forge your weapon," he begins once she's composed herself, and she does. Without Crescent Rose she feels weak, like a part of her soul has been cut out, that who she is is somehow different. "But there's something I'd like your help with before that."_

 _Ruby silently nods, and lets herself be lead out of bed in a daze, not even noticing Zwei beside them despite his claws scrabbling against the floor. Uncle Qrow leads her across the house to a rarely used guest wing that used to be where friendly family and family friends stayed. The scent of incense grows stronger, so much of it present that she suspects what's behind the door that Zwei begins to claw at and try to get through once again, though not as hard as she knows he could._

 _Inside is a boy, taller than her, laying asleep in a bed like it's a hospital gurney. His hair is black and shaved close, and he looks like he lost a fight with an ursa with the bandages to prove it. He even has pressure mark bruises on the bridge of his nose, though there's no sign of any glasses by his bedside._

 _There's another man in the room, a man with deep green roads who is holding the pot of incense. He nods to her but addresses her Uncle even as Zwei jumps on the bed with presumptuous familiarity._

 _"It is done, Qrow. But what you asked- to change something so tightly held- it won't last. Brief as it was, it is a part of him, part of who he was. It will all return some day. What I have done, it is only a temporary reprieve."_

 _"It's necessary, Lethe," Uncle Qrow reassures. "We don't need this to be last forever- just long enough. We can manage their return when the time comes.. Your son should be able to help us by then. Until then, we'll give something to replace what is missing."_

 _"Very well," the man in green agrees. "I will warn him, so that he can focus on his training and not just his job."_

 _"Tell him to be discrete about both," Qrow suggests. "There are some things even Ozpin doesn't need to know yet."_

 _The jade man laughs. "Don't worry. Ren is very good at keeping quiet." He gives another nod, and sees himself out._

 _"Uncle Qrow, what was that about?" Ruby asks._

 _"Just some business that you shouldn't worry about," Uncle Qrow replies. "Instead, you should worry about him." He walks over to the sleeping boy and shakes him gently. "Arise," he urges. "It's alright to wake up now. There's someone you need to see."_

 _The boy doesn't respond at first, not until Zwei licks him. He stirs slowly, as if arising from the sleep of the dead. He yawns, and stretches, and slowly comes to. He doesn't look at them, not at first. Instead he looks to the empty corners, where there's no one she can see, and he looks around the room. There's an expression on his face, the way he does it, that tells of a sort of experience she will never have. Whatever he expects to see in those empty corners, he doesn't, and only then does he look at her in confusion._

 _He has the reddest eyes she's ever seen, so red she almost recoils. Almost. They're blood red but they aren't bad, aren't mad or angry at all, and she doesn't flinch because they don't scare her in the least. There's no recognition in them when they rest on her, but there is something she recognizes: a strength in them that would be obvious with just the slightest crease of the brow. A determination to keep on moving, no matter how hopeless the hardship._

 ** _[_** _'Military brat,' an unsought thought rises. It's a memory she hasn't remembered yet, but it fits his expression and sense of experience. **]** _

_"Good morning," Uncle Qrow greets the waking lad, even though it was late afternoon. "Why don't you introduce yourself?" he asks the red-eyed boy._

 _"Resh… Kolc," the boy answers haltingly, as if out of practice in saying his own family name. He looks to Uncle Qrow, and Qrow nods before turning towards her._

 _"Resh is the relative of some late acquaintances of mine. Before they passed, they asked that I look after him until he was an adult. Before I could find him after hearing of their deaths, he had already left home and gotten into trouble."_

 _"Must have been some trouble," Ruby remarks, noting of the bandages and still smelling the incense. A trainload, easy…_

 _"He got mixed up with a bad crowd and people were hurt," Qrow explains frankly, and Resh Kolc flushes in shame and looks away._

 _"People?" Ruby can't help but ask._

 _"My fault," Resh Kolc chokes out in confession, pitch deepening as his throat tightens with emotion. "Everything my fault. A friend tried to help me stop, but in the end- she- Xia-"_

 _He couldn't continue. He didn't need to. Ruby's soul beat in empathy, heart sharing the feeling- he wasn't the only one to fail, to lose, a friend who gave a chance. She could forgive him that, once she managed to forgive herself._

 _"Resh has made mistakes," Qrow admits. "But I believe he's trying to make up for them and keep moving forward. That's why I've decided to let him attend Signal as long as he is a guest here."_

 _Resh's eyes widen._

 _"Me?" Resh's mouth seems to gape. "A student at Signal?" His sins aside, surely he was too old- surely it was too late-_

 _"You want to be a Hunter too?" Ruby exclaims. The hole in her heart isn't gone, but for now her grief is forgotten, chased away as an innocent excitement takes its place._

 _Resh nods. "More than anything," he whispers, voice cracking._

 _"This is your chance, then," Uncle Qrow says. "Your **last** chance. If you waste it- if you make the wrong choices and go astray and fall again-"_

 _"I won't," Resh swears. "Ever. I'd rather die first."_

 _It's not the sort of promise with a time limit._

 _(Jaune had made a similar promise, she remembered. He'd promised he wouldn't leave, promised he'd wait, an Arc never goes back on his word and so some part of her had known he was a victim when he'd been gone once she returned. Part of her had known that because she chosen to leave, because she hadn't been there to help protect him against whatever had taken him away, that he'd never had a real chance to keep it. Making a promise is one thing, but sometimes you needed family or just one friend by your side to help you actually keep it.)_

 _"We'll see," Uncle Qrow responds. "Which is why I brought her here. This is my niece," he says, introducing her. "She's younger than you, but already an exceptional scythe wielder, even if her own weapon was lost recently. She's also a student at Signal." Ruby gives a nervous wave and tries to smile, uncomfortable at the praise and still missing her just-lost Weapon and friend._

 _"Nice to meet you, Ma'am," Resh greets her formally, which made her feel all the more awkward. Jaune had never been so formal or polite. It feels wrong._

 _"I'd like you to keep an eye on Resh going forward," Uncle Qrow asks her. "Both to keep him out of trouble, and to help him adjust to Signal. Resh has never been to a combat school, and has a lot of catching up to do if he's to graduate within two years."_

 _"Two years?" both youths respond. Prep schools like Signal were typically four year programs. Even if he was older- even if he had his aura unlocked and any sort of extra experience or training to give him an advantage on the normal first-years- to try and get through them in half the time-_

 _"In two years, Resh will be a full adult and no longer my ward. I will no longer be able to claim custody of him. Consider it a condition of admission and stay here," Uncle Qrow says. "Can you do it?" he challenges._

 _("If I could give you a chance," the Grimm Reaper above him began, his talon resting on his shoulders as gently as a girl's rose, "to become the better person you've tried to be, even if it meant choosing to give up the only life you've ever known-")_

 _("If you had to choose," Uncle Qrow asked her, looking at Jaune's still-unconscious form that she insisted she carry, "between keeping a friend safe from harm but far away, or risking them on a chance and letting them try to prove how good they could be-")_

 _("Would you take it?")_

 _("Would you make it?")_

 _"Yes!"_

 _Ruby looks at Resh, even as he looks back at her in surprise. He didn't seem that strong, he didn't have good weapon callouses, or a heroic grace, or anything else to suggest he knew how to fight properly, but-_

["Want help?" she offered instead of leaving.]

["I think it's a bit late for that," he muttered, almost too quiet to hear.]

[It's never too late to make a fresh start]

 _-but his eyes have an energy that can't be disguised, too much hope and potential to be hidden behind the red, and they meet her fearless grey without faltering._

[Even at his lowest, he had a conviction that rivaled her own.]

 _Ruby Rose, always awkward and a bit shy when it came to meeting new people, none the less knows she's making the right choice, just as she knows she has one chance to say the right thing._

 _"Hey," she begins softly, reaching out tentatively, as if afraid to startle an old and sleeping friend._

 _There was only one thing she could say, really._

 _"Want to make a weapon together?"_

 _Resh Kolc gave her a smile that reached his eyes-_

 _"I'd like that a lot."_

 _-and took her hand._

 _"Thank you, Ruby."_

/

* * *

/

 _Jaune Arc was the descendant of heroes who never had an honest chance to be a Hunter. Jaune was just a common criminal who didn't think he had a choice. They risked everything about themselves trying to do the right thing, but in doing so they proved themselves more than just the common criminal everyone thought they were._

 _Because of them, Resh Kolc has both a chance and a choice- and with Ruby's help, he can make the most of that golden opportunity. He can even hear it, without a hint of incense interfering, and one day she will as well._

 _(Not coin clinking- not the metal- **G** **old**. After so long, it will finally, finally make sense.)_

/

* * *

/

 **"Gold"**

.

Dream of anything  
I'll make it all come true  
Everything you need  
Is all I'll have for you  
I'm forever  
Always by your side  
Whenever you need a friend  
I'm never far behind

.

If the stars all fall  
When there's no more light  
and the moon should crumble  
You will be alright

.

Don't you worry about the dark  
I will light up the night with the love in my heart  
I will burn like the sun  
I will keep you safe and warm  
Like the smell of a rose on a Summer's day  
I will be there to take all your fears away  
With a touch of my hand  
I will turn your life to gold  
With a touch of my hand  
I'll turn your life to gold

.

Let's have everything  
Nothing we cannot do  
Every heart just beaming  
Every sky turns blue  
I'm so happy  
Just to have you here  
Smiles bringing sunshine  
And worries disappear

.

When the days turn dark  
And we start to fall  
I will pick you up and  
We will fix it all

.

Don't you worry about the dark  
I will light up the night with the love in my heart  
I will burn like the sun  
I will keep you safe and warm  
Like the smell of a rose on a Summer's day  
I will be there to take all your fears away  
With a touch of my hand  
I will turn your life to gold,

.

Don't worry I've got you  
Nothing will ever harm you  
I'm close by I'll stay here  
Through all things I will be near

.

Close your eyes  
Don't you cry  
Love's around you  
In time you'll fly

.

Don't you worry about the dark  
I will light up the night with the love in my heart  
I will burn like the sun  
I will keep you safe and warm  
Like the smell of a rose on a Summer's day  
I will be there to take all your fears away  
With a touch of my hand  
I will turn your life to gold  
With a touch of my hand  
I'll turn your life to gold

/

* * *

/

 _End Metempsychosis_

/

* * *

/

Author Notes:

(It's alright to cry, you know. Tears of happiness and all that.)

This is end of the emotional roller coaster that was A Common Criminal or Something. No more tricks. No more traps. No more arcs. There was a light at the end of the tunnel, and it wasn't an onrushing train- it was 'Gold.' Enjoy your prize- it's the reward for patience and perseverance, and not just for the characters.

There's _technically_ one more chapter tomorrow- a final farewell of sorts from one very important but under-recognized actor- but this is the thematic, spiritual, and structural end of the story. This is the ending that Common Criminal was always building itself towards.

It seems so long since we started two months ago, doesn't it? In some ways it seems longer- a lifetime, or at least a life of crime. You saw Jaune go from a minor mover to what will one day be the most legendary common criminal in Remnant... and that was just what he did in one short bad life. Imagine what he could with a good life and better friend.

The tale of a Common Criminal (or something) may be resolved, but stories like this never really end. There's just a point that the story teller stops telling. Which will be... tomorrow.

See you then, dear readers. And thank you for not giving up.


	61. Afterlife

**Afterlife  
**

Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY.

/

* * *

/

"When you wake up you'll still be you inside and we'll still be watching after you with pride because you always make the right choice even if you do everything else wrong first. It will be alright and you won't be alone in the end. Promise."

― Jeanne Arc  


/

* * *

/

 _There's a memory that isn't Ruby's, but isn't fake, and which she's swear she's heard before, whispered in the wind or by her heart in a dream she doesn't remember._

 _Even if she doesn't understand it, even if she doesn't remember it, Ruby took it up and fulfilled a promise from beyond the grave. Jeanne Arc likes to think that if she was still alive, she and Ruby would have been friends- even if Yang would never forgive kinda-sorta killing her._

 _Her brother hadn't lived a life above reproach. He hadn't kept from falling so far that many had wondered if he could ever climb out of the underworld he'd slipped into. But he'd done the right thing in the end, had gotten back up even after he'd lost all hope and wanted to give up, and it really would be alright now that he wasn't alone._

 _Her Word kept, all the other actual spirits and ghosts Jaune had and hadn't seen watching over him, they were free to keep moving forward if they wanted. But Jeanne Arc didn't, not yet- her promise to Jaune was in good hands with Ruby, but Jaune still had to keep his words that night to her._

 _She's not worried- he was already mostly there. He'd met a nice girl, and he'd already made the family proud. Really all he had left was to get into Beacon- actually get in past the gates, Jaune, not just be accepted. Carrying on the family legacy isn't quite the same thing as the family name, no matter how that situation worked out. She'd like it if he could get Crocea Mors back though. Resh's weapon will be great and all, she's sure- but no matter how well Ruby forges it, it'll be missing something. Something distinctly Arc, a timeless bit of the family soul that doesn't need to be re-forged each generation. Maybe she could whisper something to Ruby when the time comes, when the memories start to come back- after all, Ruby's closer than even Qrow suspects. And it wouldn't be the first time the Unbreakable Promise and Oathkeeping Blade had had to be replaced after being lost or forgotten by careless inheritors of the family soul. Some collector would have a replica indistinguishable from the real thing, a piece of metal with sentimental value, but the real Crocea Mors was the living promise of the Arcs. As long as an Arc survived, the promise could be remade, reaffirmed and forged anew._

 _But she can be patient until then, just as she had been before. Right now she's watching because she wants to, not because Arc Words make her, and she's watching with pride and joy. Thanks to Ruby, life looks golden for her brother. Ruby's a nice girl, and sometimes (not always, but a chance) all it takes is a nice girl to help a bad boy become a good man. She couldn't have picked better for her brother if she tried._

 _Jaune has a chance now, maybe a dishonest chance, but she knows he'll make the right choice. For an Arc with both a chance and a choice, that opportunity is almost a promise, and from an Arc a promise made with a friend to help keep it is as good as a guarantee. She's not worried about the future, no matter how uncertain it may be. If he stumbles and starts to slide, Ruby will be there to help him back up before he falls. Jeanne couldn't be prouder of Jaune's choice of friend, even if it wasn't quite as good as still having a great sister would have been._

 _After all, unlike some people, she never doubted Jaune for a minute._

/

* * *

/

 _Fin_

/

* * *

/

Author Notes:

And there's the _Fin_. That means it's over- completely, utterly, no-more-story or secret chapters or any more story over.

Though there is the Post-Mortem. More on that in a sec.

Thanks to my Beta, PhantomGalaxy13, for helping clean up what used to be far, far worse. Thanks also to him for letting me borrow the name of his OC from his story 'How I Made You Meet Mother.' I encourage you to give it a chance- like Common Criminal, it starts rough early on, but falls into its own flow of things. Resh is the (fake name) of the future son of Jaune- and he has own memory issues. Thanks, PG13, for letting me take advantage of it. It was too poetic not to use. I'll try not to make any jokes about how Resh is the child of Jaune Arc and Just Jaune.

(Other than that one. And pointing out that Resh's eyes are red like a certain pair of mook sunglasses, and a black buzz cut, from a distance, can look a bit like a bowler hat... so 'Resh Kolc' really is a visual cross of Jaune Arc (blonde goofball) and Just Jaune (mook with red glasses and black hat). Funny how that works.)

Now... this is the last chapter of the story. However, next Saturday I'll be posting the Post-Mortem. It's not part of the story- it's the autopsy. My mega-ultra-long author notes/thoughts/comments about the design and creation of the story. It's long- really long- and goes into depth on the various themes, meta-considerations, and background mechanics about the story- things that you probably never even noticed, but in retrospect will make a lot of sense. Like the reasoning behind why Jaune escaped the Underworld and lives, rather than end the story at him pulling the lever. Or how a deliberate theme of the story, about 'not giving up' even without hope, was aimed not only at the characters, but the readers.

But those are just my viewpoints. Right now is the time for yours. It's also your chance to get any questions you have answered. Was there something you don't understand even now? Want to know how I'd approach 'magical weapon design' for powers and mechanics of Weapons like I reference in the story?

I'll do my best to clear up any lingering confusions- just leave it in a review, along with other thoughts.


	62. Post-Mortem

Post-Mortem

/

Story's over, folks. This is the autopsy.

If you're a first-time reader who jumped to the end because the story was depressing… go back and finish it. You'll thank me when you do, if you do. If you can't without knowing the ending, this story isn't the sort for you.

For everyone else-

This is something new I've wanted to do with a project for awhile: an analysis of the story I wrote. Unlike my scenario construction projects (Renegade Reinterpretations, Fallout: Orleans) in which I upfront told people what themes they should look for and find important, this is a scenario deconstruction. I'll take apart what I put together, and point out what I thought was important. You get the pleasure of agreeing or disagreeing, since only you will be able to say if you saw these going in, or recognize them now that I point them out in hindsight.

What follows is lots of thoughts on the narrative, planning process, and intent of this all. Like, alot- this compilation of thoughts on the story is over a third of the actual story itself.

Obviously, your own impression is what's most important for you. But some of you might be interested in my thoughts. This is very informal, very wordy, and potentially very informative.

It (shouldn't be) necessary to understand the story... but you might find it interesting how I understood it.

/

Starting off: what was the Authorial Intent for what sort of story this fic was supposed to be?

This is a story about not giving up, even when things seem hopeless.

This was a character-focused drama with an underpinning of fantasy elements.

This was a 'Fall and Redemption' story, with the goal of blending drama and fantasy into something that would one day be remembered in legend and fairy tale in Remnant itself. The story starts as something of a greek tragedy, before Ruby's influence transitions it to a redemption-based fairy tale. Jaune brings the tragedy, Ruby brings the idealism, and by the end they've mingled so that Ruby takes on some angst so that Jaune can have a (happier) ending.

It never was, and never was going to be, a story of Jaune becoming a criminal overlord. The first clue should have been in the title- 'Common Criminal.' Something bad, but not irredeemable. The prospect of going past the line of irredeemable- the uncertainty about how far Jaune would fall- was a key point of the drama, but it was the prospect rather than the realization of it that kept the character suspense going.

But at the same time, the life of crime was never going to have a 'perfect' consequence-free ending either: Jaune loses his identity and will be a wanted man if he ever regains it. Ruby mourns, and doesn't quite realize she's gotten a fairy tale ending. Team PWBY is destroyed, with Yang the only one who can go back to being a hero. Sun is dead. Cinder is still free, and the White Fang still active. While the day is saved for now storm clouds linger on the horizon if/when it all unravels.

The overall tone for this story was to be bitter-sweet, in that order and spread over the duration of the fic. Heavy on the increasing bitter for the first half (up to the jail cell), and then tempering it with the sweet more and more as you went on. Some people never saw it as sweet- after all, who cares about faceless innocenets saved if named characters fall- but even with authorial fore-knowledge I feel the last half of the story is an upward climb from Jaune's pit of despair in the Underworld. There was uncertainty that marred things and made things seem worse- but uncertainty is the key to suspense, and the challenge of life. It's why optimism and heroism are so admirable- not because it's easy when you know it will work out, but when you try the right thing anyway without knowing that it will.

(Then again, I'm a very cynical person. It shades my sense of idealism. This is a 'dark fic' in the sense of 'night is darkest just before the dawn.')

It was always going to have a happy ending- but happiness was going to be the reward for enduring despair, uncertainty, and a certain amount of hopelessness without giving up when things looked bleak. The payoff for not settling for 'good enough' rather than seeing things through. And I'm not just talking about the characters.

Congratulations, dear reader: this story was also a trial of YOUR perseverance, a test of whether you would give up in the face of ambiguity and where the only promise of a happy ending came from a dead woman. The happy ending is your reward as well- and one you can hold over everyone who quit because 'it was too depressing' or 'my favorite character was killed' or 'the author is a pretentious twat!'

I'd only agree on maybe one of those three.

/

Moving on to 'what was the inspiration for this story'-

First off, this is another of the 'Or Something' series, aka my 'Jaune is something other than a badass hero' story ideas. Completely different style from 'A Farmer or Something', but same fountain of inspiration. The initial brainstorming of 'Or Something' is 'who in the RWBY cast could interact with Jaune in another context.' Ruby got rolled as the character, and a bit of artistic inspiration helped shape the tale.

If 'A Farmer or Something' was inspired by that piece of the Odyssey, then this one was tempered by the RWBY soundtrack. 'I May Fall' was the depressing-optimistic lyrics that served the the spine of the story about Jaune falling, but ultimately not. 'Gold' was what tempered what would have been a much, much darker story born from 'I May Fall' and turned it from bitter with almost no sweet to downright hopeful by the end. RWBY songs have an amazing balance of dark and light in the lyrics, and both 'I May Fall' and 'Gold' qualify. That balance may have been a bit on the dark side for most (nearly all) of the fic, but a story about not giving up and faith even in dark times needs that. There's no tension on redemption if it's all but guaranteed by the tone and foreshadowing devices: for redemption to be meaningful, being good needs to be hard- and that comes less from 'bravely standing up to impossible odds' and more about overcoming fear and uncertainty without a guarantee on the other side. Self-sacrifice is easy if you know it will make a difference. It's much harder if you don't. It's the people who do the right thing anyway tahat are more impressive, and it's the people who quit because they lack assurances who don't get happy endings. That applies to readers as well.

'I May Fall,' is depressing story of inevitable defeat and loss, but with a rousing chorus that while this may happen, that it's a very real possibility, it won't happen in a particular circumstance. The challenge was to balance the pressure on Jaune with the uplifting chorus. The song, which first saw where Jaune _has_ fallen, had the chorus taken out to emphasize the fatalism. But it's Ruby who brings forth the hope, and the chorus, during Divide per Ciphra. That's the promise and sort of promise they share- which considering the words I used to describe it, was a clue that the 'Elysium' song, 'Red Like Roses 2', was a red herring rather than me trying to depress the heck out of you. The thematic contrast and flaws between the song, and what happened, should have been clues about the role of RLR2.

Reading Elysium the first time through, before Ruby rejects the song, is supposed to be dark and depressing, with the expectation that she's going to give up- except for the niggling inconsistency that keeps it from being convincing. Reading it again, when you can spot the thematic inconsistencies, cast's Ruby's role in the arc as a much more optimistic face of grief. Ruby thinks Jaune is gone- and in a sense he is- but the fact that she rejects Red Like Roses (which has him for dead and gone) and settles for Wings (which makes no implication, but is a song about overcoming hurt) were a thematic hint that Jaune wasn't necessarily dead. The line 'for as long as the memories of Jaune's death haunt her' was foreshadowing, obvious only in retrospect, about what actually happened. Ultimately 'Red Like Roses 2' was a red herring- and while the reader was intended to take the view that the two speakers were Jaune and Ruby, the resolution (and the effect of character resolution) disproves this fall (and death) as false.

I May Fall is ultimately a hopeful song about NOT falling, and even if you lost sight of it and forgot, it was always there. Which fits part of the thematic role of promises, both remembered (Jaune and Ruby's, which were commonly recited) and forgotten (Jeane's, which were much rarer). Ultimately 'I May Fall' applies to both Jaune and Ruby- Jaune, who does fall, but recovers and doesn't fall again, and Ruby, who comes close to succumbing to despair but ultimately doesn't lose her ideals. The song is the promise they share, with Jaune starting the depressing fall, Ruby bringing the chorus and the hope, and with Jaune finishing it off with his redemption. It's their song, because they both go through it all, and because thanks to the memories of eachother they both don't fall. Jaune pulls the break, and Ruby doesn't give up on being a Huntress.

Also, and this may be just me, but I'd swear that the male voice in 'I May Fall' sounds like Jaune.

On the other hand, 'Gold' (which was referenced rather obliquely in the story, in specific moments of hope and optimism) is an amazingly hopeful song about the unconditional compassion of someone who'd help and empower someone in a dark place. It came to epitomize my view of Ruby in the story regarding Jaune- Ruby as the singer, the person of unconditional compassion and Jaune as the person who needed it. It's important to note that as far as the song, and the story, are concerned, 'love' isn't even implicitly romantic in nature. It can be familial, or friendly, and in this context it's innocent affection and pure compassion.

'Wings' and 'Forever' were very late additions to the story- after the posting phase was well underway.

'Wings' was the ideal antithesis to 'Gold,' reflecting the effects of the memory alterations on Ruby. It's a comforting song about healing and flying in the future, as opposed to the empowerment to fly now of 'Gold.' As long as her memory is affected, Ruby is hurt and hurting and so falls more under 'Wings,' but because of that burden she's simultaneously able to give Jaune gold, and one day will herself. It a good sort of duality, more complimentary than contrasting.

'Forever' was special. It's technically the only non-RWBY song I used… but it's by Casey Lee Williams and Jeff Williams, ie the brains behind all the other RWBY songs. If it's not in RWBY Season 3, I'll be amazed, and so not only is it RWBY in spirit but it was such perfect lyrics that I felt it had to be used, even if it was a bit awkward. Obviously it's not Qrow's song- it's what he stole from Ruby (and a bit from Jaune) when he stole their memories. This is the song that Ruby **_should_** have had during 'Elysium' if her memories weren't tampered with- the song that would have applied between finding Jaune (unconscious) on the train, and until 'Gold' could be realized for both of them. Though there's only one singer, the song blends elements of both of them… which is perfectly appropriate, considering the blending the two go (thematically and metaphorically) by the end. The first part captures how Jaune wants to live life with Ruby, who keeps him from falling and who went all the distance for him. The second part captures Ruby's perspective of when Qrow explains that she'll have to forget, and so she holds the wounded Jaune and cherishes the little time they have before the mind wipe. The final could be a promise from any of them- from Ruby to Jaune or Jaune to Ruby- before the memory scrub, promising and setting up the fulfillment and resolution of 'Gold.'

So, hopefully you can see that music was a big part of this story. It was something that started small and got more blatant later on. This wasn't just because it wasn't being noticed- early fragments of lyrics and turns of phrases were stolen from the main songs were put into dialogue, but few noticed- but as a part of the rising influence and role of the metaphysical that was supposed to be in the background. Just as aura and semblances and Arc Words were getting more involved later on, so did the songs. In a sense the role of songs was the Rose family semblance, with the idea being that music was in a sense deterministic and would set/guarantee the tone of what was to come. If Arc Words guarantee promise into the future, than Rose Songs were predictors of what was and would happen (which, again, makes the rejection of Red Like Roses 2 significant).

/

On the subject of 'Would the Real Jaune Arc please stand up'…

Jaune is the subject of address in 'Gold.' He's that friend in a dark place, and while he's supposed to be sympathetic Jaune's not supposed to be admirable- he's afraid and desperate and stumbling from bad to worse, but he's also rationalizing and excusing himself as a harmless criminal and making one bad choice after another as they keep piling up. On one hand many of them are understandable- Jaune is broke and alone in the city and needs food, Jaune is afraid of the mob, Jaune is afraid of jail and the whispers of what go on. But ultimately Jaune's fear of the consequences of leaving are an obstacle that only grows larger, epitomized by the murder of Tukson the deserter, which serves as his 'point of no return' on various levels. This was the point that Just Jaune takes prominence, rather than being the occasional name for Jaune as it was earlier on.

Just Jaune was the criminal persona, tied to the red glasses, that Jaune Arc developed to deal with the life of crime. He's the mask Jaune Arc wore (the glasses he hid behind) when dealing with the crime and guilt and fear for his life- the worse things got, the more he relied on the more confident and capable criminal who would do what Jaune Arc couldn't or wouldn't in order to survive. Just Jaune's exact nature is ambiguous and left to the reader's discretion- whether he's a split personality or an actual second soul or a persona or something else- but he's supposed to be the 'unfettered' Jaune. The one who (thinks he) isn't bound by the Arc Semblance of never going back on your word and thus being free of consequence. As a criminal he's beyond the reach of the law, which means he can do whatever he wants… which begs the question of 'what does Jaune want?' It wasn't about the limits placed on him by outsiders, but self-imposed limits. Just Jaune didn't start after Tuscon- he'd already been subtly there before hand, in places where I seemed to use 'Jaune Arc' and just, well, 'Jaune' interchangeably. His first direct mention was when he introduced himself, by name no less, to Ruby in the burglary.

Just Jaune's rise is supposed to be subtle- you're not supposed to be immediately spot the difference, with some ambiguity between when 'Jaune' refers to Just Jaune or Jaune Arc or both. Ultimately he's a coping device for Jaune's piling guilt of the choices and people whose deaths he feels responsible for (the ghosts), but at the same time he has the core vestige of humanity by sharing Jaune Arc's desire to keep Ruby (the innocent) safe. His role towards the end, post-Tukson, is contrasting the confident criminal person with Jaune's guilt-driven mental breakdown, which culminates and resolves with Jaune no longer putting his own life and fears first and pulling the break on the Breach. Jaune throwing away the cleaver, but respectfully putting aside the glasses, is the point where Jaune accepts himself and becomes whole, rejecting the harmful life of a criminal while no longer hiding from the responsibility of his criminal past. He's prepared to accept his Fate, whatever it is… even as his judge, jury, and executioner is a Reaper with more regard for good than law.

'Justin John,' who was mentioned a few times as a late arrival but never ultimately appeared except in the hints of the Bad End, was the prospective future evolution of Just Jaune: a truly exceptional criminal who would have been more (and worse) than the Common Criminal that Jaune was. He's what Jaune would/could have been had he not stopped the Breach, the Jaune who had followed the path of the White Fang/Cinder's Conspiracy/Roman's apprentice. (Which one it would have been was left open for your imagination). He would have been completely different, being neither Jaune or Arc he would truly have been beyond the Arc semblance. Not just a fatalist but a nihilist, Justin John would have given up on hope, heroes, and Ruby, and would have been truly irredeemable.

/

Let's talk about powers and god damn ghosts.

On the topic of Jaune's powers and semblance- I don't write fight scenes. No apology, I just don't unless I feel I have to. I'm bad at it, they bog down my writing, and they're not for me or my style. That said, the question of Jaune's powers was something I considered since that was a clear sign of Jaune's growing status as a criminal. Aura was obviously the biggest signal that Jaune was gathering power, and I tied it to Tukson as another one of those moments of no-return as the story tone-shifted as Jaune started to really live in the underworld. His semblance was the second step, the stage at which the fantasy elements would begin to enter the story.

Jaune's semblance is deliberately vague and unclear, since there's actually two in play: Jaune's semblance, which is tied to ghosts, and the Arc Words semblance, which tied into Crocea Mors. Both play into the supernatural elements of the story, which while important they aren't the main focus, anymore than dust and semblances are the focus of RWBY proper. Cool and distinctive, yes. The plot and drama? No.

The Crocea Mors/Arc semblance plays on the idea of Weapons being an extension of the soul. For personally-crafted weapons, that's a powerful combo with the semblance, which is a reflection of a soul- but what about 'shared' weapons, like a family heirloom? If Crocea Mors is Jaune's weapon, but also his father's, and his grandfather's, and every other Arc's, then it's both an extension of his soul but also the extension of every other Arc's soul. But if it isn't just Jaune's soul, no one person's soul, wouldn't that mean that it's a soul in and of itself? A collective soul of the Arc family, one that could have a reflection of itself? I headcanon 'yes', and this collective soul, forged in Ye Mythic Past, has the semblance of the Arc Words. Crocea Mors and the Arc Words come in to parts: a shield (the unbreakable promise) that will never break so long the Arc keeps their word, and the sword (the oath-keeper) that will kill an Arc before they can go back on it. In exchange for killing them if they do, the Semblance empowers the Arcs who try to keep their words, to the point of enabling the otherwise impossible.

It's deep magic of a forgotten age, and arguably a bigger threat to the Arcs than their enemies, but it's also potent. Not necessarily easily applicable, but potent. The tautological nature of the semblance, of a promise that that the World will -not- allow to be gone back on, is what produces the time paradox at the end of Underworld when multiple Arc Words are pitted against eachother in loophole abuse by Jeane Arc.

It's best in-setting demonstration as a 'practical' power boost is actually when Ruby channels it during her little marathon: energy and determination pushing her to keep her beyond her limits in order to keep her word. If she hadn't- if she'd quit or run away or given up along the way, or later on given Yang the promise about giving up on being a Huntress- she'd havebeen killed. Ruby's heart pains after the dream sequence aren't merely emotional- there's a figurative and symbolic piece of the Crocea Mors, Jaune's Crocea Mors, in her and tying her into the Arc mojo. Congrats, Ruby- you're official an Arc in the eyes of the World. The two of you were bound together the moment Jaune entered your heart.

Wait, that sounds romantic, let's try that again.

You became a part of the Arc family the moment Jaune came into you- uh, that time Jaune sword was pressed against your chest- Er. Hey, Ruby, remember when Jaune's sister Jeane stabbed you with Jaune's magic sword in a trippy three-way role-play that still confuses you, back on that night you all swore to forget and never mention again?

(Alright, it wasn't really intended as a dirty virginity joke. But someone pointed it out by PM, and for all you shippers who kept trying to see it… now you can't unsee it. Hope you're happy.)

That's the Arc semblance. Jaune's semblance, just Jaune's, is related to the ghosts, who dabbled between real and not. Strictly speaking, it could be described and dismissed as a sort of aura-construct projection semblance like Sun's. The supernatural nature of spirits and ghosts isn't the point of the story, anymore than the magical aspects of dust and semblances are the focus of FRWBY, but Just Jaune's semblance is tied to that, empowers the ghosts to act, but most of all is the extension and reminder of his guilt.

Why don't ghosts talk to Jaune? Why can Jaune only see the ghosts he feels responsible for, even if one of them (Blake) might not actually be dead? Why does Jeane talk **_[like this to Ruby]_** , but never to Jaune? What doesn't Jaune see the ghosts of the Arcs at all? Mostly it's just arbitrary stylistic decision, just like every other semblance that runs somewhere between 'rule of cool' and 'rule of drama.'

(Though they do have answers. Ghosts don't talk because Just Jaune isn't prepared to 'listen' to his conscience when his semblance develops. Jaune's semblance, undeveloped as it is, has mental limitations: were it fully developed, he could create apparitions of anyone dead or alive, even himself. He can't see the Arcs because he lost his link to them between losing Crocea Mors and rejecting the name by becoming Just Jaune. Jeane can talk to Ruby because she's empowered by Arc Words in order to help her keep her promise, and because of the link they have from Divide per Ciphra and the whole 'Crocea Mors in your heart' thing.)

If a semblance is the expression of someone's personality in a form, then Just Jaune's is a personal combination of 'memory' and 'guilt' that gave the ghosts form, not only for him but also those around him (the White Fang who see Tuscon). They may be guilt-based hallucinations, but they aren't just hallucinations: they have a real presence in the world, as seen when they move Roman's cane. If it had ever been developed and trained he might have been a summoner-sort of fighter, calling forth disposable ghosts to fight his battles for him, but as it was it was just a giant guilt trip aimed solely at him. Being a combination of guilt and memory is why Jaune can see the ghosts from those he remembers, but Resh (who remembers guilt, but whose memory is fake) does/can not.

Or maybe he is just crazy with guilt and there's no good answer for the rest. Delirious Jaune Arc does still see them at the end in the train, after all. Maybe he inherits Just Jaune's. Maybe he'll develop 'his' own some time in the future. But how does that explain the ghosts of the Arcs guiding Ruby through the caves and giving her aura to keep on running? Maybe Jaune's semblance runs a bit deeper than even I thought, or maybe Jeanne is a special case since she made a deathbed promise and planned her Arc Word on a post-mortem gambit knowing that it would fall on (and empower) someone else to fulfill it.

As you can see, there's a pretty steep rabbit hole you can go down here. Speculation for everyone lets everyone bring their own interpretations forward- even if their interpretation is 'the writer is a hack.'

Point is, rather than focus on Jaune Arc having a badass combat semblance to help with a life of crime, I thought it better if the magical/supernatural element linked Jaune's guilt to the people who passed before him and because of him. It might have no combat application in the story proper, but so what?

/

'WTF was the whole Ruby throwing the pillow and then seeing ghosts and what's with the time warp?'

Unlike semblances and stuff, there's a pretty basic answer for this.

It _started_ with a drunk-post draft late in my writing process that got out of hand. And now I'm writing it down for posterity who will read this fic later and not get to live the fun of the week of fun that led to the 'bad end.'

Originally, and by originally I mean in the first beta'd draft, there was never a 'Ruby throws the pillow' scene: aside from some black humor musings, the original plan was always that Ruby would find the keys and realize that Jaune wasn't completely evil, which was what most of the foreshadowing and built-up chapters had been set up to imply. It was supposed to be a shock to the reader, the big plot twist that the 'bad' Jaune wasn't as in control as you thought. The next week (Crossing Styx) would be tension where the reader would be left wondering who was, or would be, in control: Just Jaune, or Jaune Arc? Which itself would be subverted by the reveal that it wasn't either-or: both Jaune and Arc were going to stop the train, together. So there was always a \/ sort of dip between the downward spiral of 'Underworld' and the rising action of Crossing Styx and the slow clawing upwards towards a happier ending afterwards as optimism built. It just wasn't that deep, or steep, since the final dip was Jaune walking out of the cell and not closing the door behind him.

My original intent was that that Jaune throwing the pillow and the keys would be the cliff-hanger, and that I would leave the story for a week or so there as I posted a separate fic, 'Househusband Macho,' which was also an update-a-day fic but which I wanted to finish posting on Father's Day. (If you haven't read it already- go check it out. Much happier, and the final chapter was one of my best pieces to date. End shameless self-plug.)

But as the time to make a choice approached, I realized that I was going to have some overlap between the stories regardless- I wouldn't make a clean cut-off. So I thought about how to address it, remembered that I'm a sadist, and thought it'd be appropriate and not at all hilarious to leave everyone on a mega-downer for a week rather than one of the most uplifting cliffhangers I've seen. It's not as childish as that sounds, mind you- cliffhangers usually aren't supposed to be uplifting, and considering that the rest of the fic broadly follows a 'rising tide' idea of only getting happier towards the end, I thought it'd be better to stop at the lowest part in the story (Ruby realizing she fucked up) rather than two days after what would have been the lowest part (Blake's capture, which was a meta-character of importance more than a core part of the story).

So I twisted the chapter into something suitably depressing, and thought I'd resume with a joke-chapter that blatantly broke continuity and use it to explain that I was never going to give you up, never going to let you go, never going to run around and desert you~

Ahem. (Yes. You just got rickrolled. In the author notes of how I had been planning to troll you. I am just that good, and that's the mood I was in at the time of writing.)

Anyways, the explanation was going to be at the end of a chapter in which Ruby sees dead people and does the time warp. I started it with the 'not sure if this was a dream' piece to parallel Common Criminal Finale, which was one of the most serious but also trippy sequences in the story. The parallel, that hint it wasn't necessarily literal, was to be the hook that kept you taking it seriously until you'd realize otherwise. Ruby sees dead people, a dirty joke or two, some breaking off the fourth wall, and yes I actually called myself out for trolling before doing the time warp.

And you know what? It didn't turn out like I had intended at all. It _worked_ \- or at least, there were enough parts of it did that I didn't throw it all away _._ I have no clue how or why- I was pretty much sleep deprived at the time I wrote it, which is like being drunk but cheaper- but instead of an outrageous comedy piece I got drama and much-needed character establishment and symbolism out the whazoo. There was back-side elaboration of some of the mechanics and things going on in the design/thought process that wouldn't have been explained otherwise, like how/why Ruby's semblance gets a super-boost when running after Jaune and why she was hearing Jeane's promise. Originally, the Arc ghosts were much more subtle, and Jeanne was only referenced directly in the final chapter's reflection. It touched on some of the deep themes and underlying premise of the story, which included the idea of Arc Words- promises that will be fulfilled, that won't be gone back on, even post-death. (You'll even note that, from a certain point of view, not one Arc Word is broken across the fic- neither Jaune or Jeanne say 'when' the wake-up prophesies will be- it's merely the characters who believe they failed the promise until they keep on trying to the point that they actually succeed.) It also touched on and elaborated the idea of weapons as extensions of the soul. It hid the quasi-deterministic aspects of the metaphysics of the story: the themes and foreshadowing were, in some ways, more than just themes and foreshadowing.

It didn't work perfectly. For some it didn't even work well. I'll be the first to admit that it was a severe shock: the equivalent of getting someone's toes wet in the semblance/magic side of the story by throwing them into the ocean rather than just jumping off the deep end. It was a drastic tone change (which was completely deliberate), it was confusing (if you think it was hard to read a paradox intended to be deliberately confusing, imagine trying to write that), and it did introduce a pretty volatile and iffy-thing element as time manipulation. (Which, and I'll be honest, would usually and generally should be the focus of any story involving it.)

The biggest problem with it, in my retrospect, is that just one part of the introduction of the fantastical elements became the focus of the chapter and the attention, rather than the character drama that began the chapter. It also violated my general posting rule of 'one main point or scene per chapter'- which added to the abnormality and let the paradox get in the way of the Ruby-Jeane scene. If I were to go back in time and change it (ha, irony), what I'd have done is keep the original section cut-off and leave the paradox piece for a separate chapter. You can see the pretty obvious break divider between where the Ruby section ended and the time warp began. It wouldn't have pleased everyone- people who disliked the first one would still be upset at the abrupt retcon without explanation, and people who enjoyed it would have been confused and think it was just an abrupt retcon- but it would have mitigated the sin.

(Fun fact: despite many people's reviews and suspicions, this wasn't inspired by the Nasu-verse, aka the Fate universe for the casually anime aware. It owes far, far more to The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe for Deeper Magic fantastical fixes, and the anime Hunter x Hunter for how conditional-based superpowers can interplay.)

So it was contentious and controversial even from the start. The above probably doesn't build any confidence in my competence. Even I had doubts about it, and as my self-aware critique here should hopefully demonstrate.

So why do it? What made it worth keeping when I woke up and read over it again?

Because Ruby.

Above all else, it gave Ruby some much-needed character development, reflection, and relevance. Before then, and even after before the integration editing occurred, Ruby was less of a person and more of a prop. She was Jaune's idea of innocence and goodness, something he put on a pedestal and tried to protect, but didn't really know much about. She was a story tool, and not much else. Giving her scenes, giving her failure and despair and then leading it back into hope and uncertainty, helped establish her and why she would care about Jaune as a person. Why she could/would overlook Jaune's flaws rather than take him down like the criminal he was (because she realized she's not so different and can empathize with making the wrong choice you can't take back), why she'd go so far (because that's just the sort of person she is), and why she'd not suffer a cynicism or character change herself at the end of the story (because her character development was going to be her renewed conviction and commitment to her idealism despite failures, not because she had none). It made it less about Jaune's projection, and more about Ruby's reaction.

It also, and this was very important to me, established the limits of the Jaune-Ruby relationship. It put out the idea that there are things she wouldn't do for him, she doesn't put him on quite the pedestal he put her, and the very important fact that romantic love is never once suggested as a motivation for either of them. Between the uber-depressing chapter of angst and a supernatural 'meet the family,' Ruby become a better character and the story got a lot better in ways that it wouldn't have otherwise. I did lose the cliffhanger impact of 'Jaune is still good deep down!', but in exchange I got a deeper low point before a clear and decisive reversal of tone as the story switched from 'Jaune's fall' to 'Jaune's redemption.'

So it served a number of very useful rolls. It was a major disruptor that helped turn the tone from despair to hopeful after allowing an important scene that wouldn't have existed without some sort of 'well, it didn't really happen' trope. It set up some later scenes and references, and it strengthened other, later parts of the story. While I don't consider it good writing on its own per see, I do think it helped make other parts of the story better by contrast, even if you're one of those who more or less head-canons that it didn't happen. Call it a sacrificial play on my part, and yet another experiment.

Plus, I got to troll you. And demonstrate one of the frankly most overpowered Arcs in the fandom, in a fic during which most people were begging for me to make Jaune cooler and more kickass. You can keep your Jaunes with their invincibility or mega-regeneration or cheesy ripoffs of anime superpowers- my Jaune's just a common criminal who fights dirty, gets mother******* ghosts, and his family's signature weapon can create time-space-existence paradoxes without meaning to if their Word is broken by loophole abuse. Take notes, amateurs.

The previous paragraph was not entirely serious. Moving on like the mature, thoughtful, and serious writer I allegedly am…

/

Onto some mechanics, themes, and structural thoughts.

The post a day style. I touched on it a bit in the author notes, but here's the review. A post a day style is more or less my style because I suck at writing. Or rather, I suck at writing anything that isn't short, which is why most my non-drabble writings are little more than a series of drabbles. I can do chunks, but not the long prose- I get bored and move on to other ideas. But even when I do write longer stories, it generally feels like a waste (and losing an opportunity) to post it all at once. Most of my stories come a few days in which I'm sick, slightly loopy, and at home on my computer all day. I can't do that any given day.

A post a day helps control long build-up periods in-setting. Its strengths are best when covering long periods of time: say in Common Criminal, the first arc, when Jaune's experiences are over weeks or months. Rather than going through months in a few minutes and going 'oh, okay,' putting it out over a week lets the slow progression develop. A post a day is also good for dramatic suspense in short (2-4 piece) conversation or sequences: you get the dramatic pause and cliffhanger, and the patience of the audience. It's also a useful way to divide and address small groups of distinct ideas: the interactions and reflections of the three Big Bad Influences on Jaune (Roman, the criminal, the White Fang, the extremist idealist, and Cinder, the ambition), or Dirge, when Jaune prepares himself to die by coming to terms with four separate elements of his career: the consequences, the responsibility, the extension of his soul, and making peace with himself. Sometimes those were close enough that people found them repetitive, like in the post-lever pull when Just Jaune and Jaune Arc and the symbiosis, Just Jaune Arc, all got a chapter of reflection. But each chapter served its own purpose- even the pre-lever pull reflections by the Big Bad Three, in which Roman/Adam/Cinder's Conspiracy each had differing views on Jaune, differing intentions, and dramatic/implicit foreshadowing for conflict in the Bad End that was a very real possibility.

On the downside, though, a post-a-day style is really bad at covering an in-setting short period of time. It took about a week for Jaune to walk from one end of a train and pull a switch. It takes less than an hour to read the same. Not a good use of time of time dilation, especially if you were impatient with the introspection. If there was any part of the story that should have been consolidated into bigger chunks, it would have been Crossing Styx. I didn't because I generally like consistency (keeping pieces relatively the same size), and I abhor scene changes in post-a-day style writing (and the 'Jaune's criminal faction reviews' would have been three). But I maintain that even though it got boring for some, it also did a good job keep the lingering tension and drama of the readers wondering if the story was going to take a turn for the worse (Jaune beyond redemption) or better (Jaune redemption).

A post-a-day also has had some meta-advantages. It's made this story very distinctive and unique as an experience. That's both for me, the writer (who gets to see the story as it's going up, and make edits/corrections/minor changes as hind-sight kicks in before it's too late), and for you the reader. For about two months, you the reader have had something to chew on over breakfast- literally, in most of your cases. For a month this was something reliable to look forward to, and to come back for, and to watch and comment as it occurred. That built investment on your part- and that emotional investment and returning interest increased the tension, made you weigh whether it was worth it or not to continue, and gave you more investment when you chose to keep coming back. It makes any variation to the schedule more significant and take on more weight: a week without updates was a heavy pause and cliffhanger, a single day a dramatic pause, and two posts in a single day could signal importance and speed. That's an effect that's impossible to emulate with infrequent but big pushes of prose. You would never have gotten as long, or as steep, a roller coaster of struggling hope and despair and back to hope again if you read this in a single day.

(It also, and this is blunt honesty, gives more exposure for a larger audience. More chapters is more chances for people to give long and short reviews. Frequent updates means more time on the top of the FFN page, giving more time to be seen and considered. Which gives more opportunities for more people to see those more chapers and leave more reviews. That's not why I did it- you'll notice that most my works are much smaller, in small fandoms- but it's true.)

/

On the topic of ambiguity, ie 'how I kept you guessing (and confused) for as long as I did'…

Another of the structural design choice was the idea of ambiguity through grammar. There are a lot of things in Common Criminal that are vague and unclear- and this was intentional, from the thematic (hope vs. despair across Jaune's story, the uncertainty of the future) to the characters (Jaune and Jaune: good or bad?) to the setting (minimalist description allows/forces imagination) to even the events of the story (Jaune pulling the break, Jaune's 'death'), and even the sense of time flow (new events taking special meaning in light of old [ _flashbacks_ ], while old events take new meaning with future developments, and how time dilation skewed anyone ability to keep track of it all, giving progression a dream-like feel). The key to all of these was the use of words and phrases that could have multiple meanings, and that you'd have to read through it a few times to catch most of them.

There's a lot of things in Common Criminal that aren't clear on the first read, and while some of that was inherent of the minimalist nature of the work (less description is less clarity), some of it was because of deliberate double-meanings and the occasional authorial misleading (red-herring foreshadowings, and the occasional author comment). To me, this is because deception and half-truths and contradictions are a core part of the story of Jaune Arc: a guy who never goes back on his word, which would imply honesty, but who's also a liar who cheated his way into Beacon. The inept heir to a family of impressive heroes. A coward who stands up for the right thing. A total loser, who we (Jaune fans, who are the ones reading this) ultimately like. They're all the same person, contradictory as it seems, so ambiguous and differing interpretations of scenes was a point in the writing. Even Just Jaune gets in on the action: is he strong or weak? Brave of the most afraid of all? Is he as bad as he thinks, or just as good if just given the chance?

Heck, Jaune's name was the most common ambiguity in the story. Just Jaune: is that Jaune, in the singular, implying that there's no one else in the room besides Jaune? Or the name of the character, the guy who's not an Arc? When I refer to Jaune- which one am I talking about? Some pieces of the story make sense with only one- but some parts of the story actually make sense if you re-read them with the other guy.

It comes up time and time again, including with the ghosts- who could be either Jaune's semblance, or a separate thing, or a bit of both. If there's no one alive who could let Ruby take back her mistake… what about someone who's dead? If an Arc dies before they can go back on their word, what about an Arc who's already dead? If Just Jaune is not Arc, and Justin John isn't Just Jaune, and Just Jaune is by definition not an Arc and just a common criminal, but common criminals by definition can't do uncommon things (or else they'd be uncommon criminals), could Just Jaune really have NOT pulled the break on the Breach? That's the sort of grammar tautology I played with, and it forms the heart of the Paradox piece and the various ghosts. Heck, I still won't say whether Blake is actually dead or not.

One of the hardest scenes to write on this idea of ambiguous wording was Jaune's 'death' scene. Dirge was all about Jaune coming to terms with his life and being prepared to die, and the scene had to fit three meanings in one: Jaune's (expected) death to Grimm, Jaune's metaphorical death (in which he will pass out and wake up as Resh), and, only in retrospect, what literally happened: Jaune being rescued by Uncle Qrow.

Those claws that 'scrabble' and try and break through? That's not Grimm- that's Zwei, who was with Qrow. Who is an authority who is and has been investigating since back in Underworld? Who's the Reaper he's waiting on? Jaune thinks it's Ruby, but earlier foreshadowing already indicated Qrow, which fits a theme of how friends and family can help keep promises in one's own absence. Why don't the Ghosts save or try to protect him from his Fate? Because Qrow is there to save him (and Qrow himself represents one of the Moirai, the Fates). Why does a single talon cut through the door like a scythe despite land-based Grimm having (multiple) claws, and talons only being found on birds of prey (who wouldn't be flying in a tunnel)? Because it **_is_** a scythe, named talon, which belongs to the weird bird Qrow. Why is Ruby one minute too late, and how did Jaune leave her behind? Because by then Jaune has passed out, and won't wake again until he's Resh Kolc.

In my view, some of the most powerful moments in the story were the scenes that were grammatically coherent in one way if taken at face value, while being just as reasonable in another way in retrospect. When Just Jaune 'pulled back' with the lever: even as I described the action, there was doubt whether he had stopped the train or stepped back to let it continue. (I ended that one quick- but seriously considered making it a cliff hanger in and of itself.) In Common Criminal Finale, in the alley behind Tukson's shop where Jaune was left as Mercury and Emerald went to get a getaway vehicle, Jaune's dazed meeting with Ruby has overtones of this idea of multiple meanings- they're speaking at cross-purposes for awhile, and it ends with Jaune 'being dragged away into the darkness.' It's simultaneously him passing out, him being dragged by Mercury and Emerald who have returned, and his metaphorical fall from Jaune Arc to Just Jaune.

But one of my favorite examples was the Moirai arc, where the implications of Qrow's cover up via mind wipe is laid out. Ozpin blows Qrow's story apart by directly attacking the ambiguity that I was exploiting: the question of 'which niece,' which set up the one-two punch of Ruby and Qrow's earlier scene of Elysium taking an entirely new meaning. Instead of Ruby complaining about the memory of the media, it becomes the realization that Qrow altered Ruby's own memories in order to try and keep Jaune's survival a secret from Ozpin and Ironwood (whose approach to Torchwick's secret survival was 'throw him in a hole without trial').

So grammatical ambiguity exploits the limitations of following Jaune's (and Ruby's) limited perspectives, and the audience's expectations, leading to scenes that can be read one way, and mean something else on a later read.

That's the sort of re-readibility I wanted to inject in the story. Yes, Common Criminal is very depressing and dark when you're uncertain- but, if you actually know that the light at the end of the tunnel isn't an oncoming train, the same words can be remarkably hopeful.

/

On the various sorts of uncertainty…

Across the story, one of the ideas I wanted to keep presenting the reader was the idea of uncertainty: about where the story was going, about what was happening or about to happen, to regularly and frequently subvert expectations and assumptions through the end. Sometimes this was giving you a false sense of certainty and pulling the rug out from under you- and then sometimes it was playing it straight in a way you were expecting a twist. The goal was to keep you guessing, and by and large I think I did.

To help it, each arc posed an implicit question to the audience- the same question of 'what do you think's going to happen,' but with a different context each time. Here's what I considered the narrative ambiguities at each stage that drove the uncertainty. These were implicit, rather than explicit, delimmas.

Common Criminal: 'How, and how far, will Jaune fall?'

That Jaune would fall was a given- it's right up there in the summary. But by going with incrementalism, and 'best intentions,' I was able to lead it on for awhile. A few people guess Tukson's murder once Cinder's conspiracy was introduced, but no one really guessed that there would be a 'floor' to Jaune's fall- that he'd fall and then linger at the level of 'common.'

Underworld: 'What does (just) Jaune want?'

This one may not have been a dilemma- or may have just been one people were willing to wait out. A lot of people suggested what they wanted Jaune's future to be, a lot of people wanted him to be a criminal villain, but few really picked up on that Jaune didn't care much about such things. Which is fine- Just Jaune at this point was more about audience projection than his own explanation- but for an arc about 'Jaune's rise in the criminal underworld' there was remarkably little ambition about what he'd do once risen. Just Jaune just wanted the power to choose- but once there, never had much thought as to what he wanted to choose.

Crossing Styx: 'Who will win- Just Jaune or Jaune Arc?' 'Will there be a Breach?'

Crossing Styx was a two-fer: whether there would be a Breach in 'this' timeline, and whether it would happen because of or despite Jaune. The different Criminal factions had their own views, the lingering shadow of the Bad End emphasized that failure was possible, but the setup definitely encouraged thinking that Jaune and Arc were at odds.

Dirge: 'Will Ruby make it in time?'

Jaune's 'death' was an obvious assumption from the arc title alone. The real question, framed by the last chapter of Crossing Styx, was whether Ruby would catch up in time to have last words with Jaune before he died. Even as Jaune came to terms with dying, the suspense was about Ruby making it in times. Ruby's 'just too late' was the dramatic anti-climax to the trope of meaningful last words.

Elysium: 'Will Ruby fall to despair?'

Elysium as an aftermath arc was really about Ruby dealing with the grief and depressing tone of the story to that point. Red Like Roses 2, besides really not being a happy song, was also a strong lead-in to leading Ruby away from being a Huntress. There was lead-up and suggestion could have become a weaponsmith, because her (in-story) friend was dead, her (canon) team was destroyed, and her (sole-survivor, traumaztized) sister was begging her not to be a Huntress. RLR2 practically ends with 'this story ends with misery ever after,' and an appeal by the second singer ('Jaune'/Summer) to not waste her life in vain as a hero. Ruby doesn't just fight corrupted memories- Ruby was fighting the narrative momentum to give up and have a bad end.

Moirai: 'Is Jaune dead or alive?'

Pretty simple sense of progression of going from one side of certainty to the other. Qrow and Ironwood play a game of words in which Ironwood leads to the accusation slowly. In the first two chapters, you get the sense of Ironwood's suspicion that Jaune isn't dead- but the reader doesn't understand why or how it could be, and Qrow is trying to deny it. Then comes the stinger of Moirai 3, in which Ozpin sets up a beautiful one-two of 'this is how he did it' to be followed by Qrow's flashback. After that, it never looked back despite Qrow playing coy.

Post-Mortem: 'Does this author note ever end?'

Keep reading to find out.

/

On the importance of formatting…

While language was ambiguous, _formatting_ was intended to be very clear- the objective hints at certain things, without misdirection. We're not just talking about **bolding for emphasis** ( _or italicizing for more subtle things_ ). [ _Flashbacks that could be remembered by a character were italicized text in non-italicized brackets._ ] [Unless they themselves were in an italicized text zone, in which they just plain text in brackets. Though the same style was used in Underworld to peak under Just Jaune's mask to reveal inner guilt.] **_[_** _Ruby's fake memories used bold, italicized, underlined brackets to hint that they were somehow different from the regular flashbacks. **]**_ **_[Jeane Arc's ghost speaks in bold, italicized text and brackets.]_**

Formatting was intended to be hints and clues free of misdirection. If there's any errors- they were actual errors, not deliberate.

/

On the role of tense and voice, and other things, across the arcs…

Here's one area I had mixed reults in the attempt, but you could get a sense of. Each arc was supposed to have a distinct sort of tone, tense, and perspective to emphasize the different phases of the story. It wasn't always upheld- it was a lesser concern I dropped for various reasons or forgetfulness-but there was an intent for dominant tones.

Common Criminal was an arc heavy on the present tense, active voice (Jaune did things, rather than things being done to Jaune), and also the most chapters with the fewest words per chapters with the least introspection. This was intentional on a number of levels- the arc takes place over the longest period of time (starting some time well before Season One, and continuing through the end), even as Jaune takes incremental steps towards his slide and fall. Jaune Arc's lack of introspection is substituted by his rationalizations- his focus on near-term thinking, and his actions that are making his life worse.

Underworld was a radical shift, going from action driven and Jaune Arc as a character actively involved in his fall to just Jaune as a passive character who was just going along with the moment, and the passive voice. The rationalizations were replaced with introspection- short-term impulses gave way to a planning viewpoint- and Jaune's waning optimism replaced with a fatalism. All of these don't just replace Just Jaune's rise, but more generally Jaune's loss of hope. It's as if he's a passenger and a witness trapped in his own life, even watching through a screen as if from a distance when Blake is captured, and it's not until Ruby comes back into play that he's re-energized with anything. Despite the brooding and introspection, though, one of the key points for Just Jaune (who, unlike Jaune's progressive decline, was instead treated as a pre-existing character to be developed by passive reflection rather than action) was the ambiguity of what he actually wanted. He was the 'bad' Jaune, the one who gave up on hope… but it was also clear he was haunted by guilt, and despite proactively seeking power he was remarkably passive and unclear of what he was going to do with that power.

Crossing Styx was the mix of active and passive, just as it was the mix of Just Jaune and Jaune Arc. It was something happening in real time, but supposed to be bouncing between active and passive voice as the part of the ambiguity of what was going to happen. Was Jaune moving forward with a plan, or was he going along with the momentum like just Jaune had for so long? Who was the dominant persona- or, in retrospect, were they trading off the entire time? Grammatical inconsistency is generally a bad thing, but in this case switching between voice and tense was at least partially intentional, as part of the 'keep the reader guessing' as Jaune set up for the double cross and the climatic flashback chapter of pulling the break. It wasn't just laziness... or at least that's my story, and I'm sticking to it.

Once the break was pulled, though, it was all supposed to be active voice and present tense. Jaune has acted, now it's time for his final actions. 'Dirge' is active present tense even as Jaune prepares himself to die- appropriate for a guy with no apparent future, but he's living his life now rather than letting it be lived for him. Jaune Arc is back in the saddle, even as he makes peace.

With Ruby in Elysium, though, Ruby goes from her earlier active voice character role (the person who stirred and instigated Jaune back into active voice) to a more passive, reflective role. Elysium goes back to the past tense, and the reflective, since the big underlying theme is Ruby's memory and reflections on Jaune, even as she's haunted by the (false) memories. Ruby struggling through that, going from past tense and passive voice ('Ruby Rose is on an airship,' 'Ruby said') to a more active voice and present tense with an eye on the future in the Elysium finale ('As she rides her ship back', 'Ruby promises with a smile') is a reflection of her working through the grief and back to the optimistic viewpoint of taking control of her life.

'Moirai', being back to the 'passive/reflective' role, is in passive voice and more in the past tense- a lead-in to the focus of not only what has happened in the past, but Qrow's secret actions as well. It's an arc with little forward movement of the plot, but reflecting on what's already occurred, known or not.

The finale is, of course, a flash back… but it's in present tense and active voice, indicating that Ruby and Jaune are taking their (new) lives in their own hands. For the readers, who already know that Ruby _will_ overcome the challenge of the false memories, the introduction of Resh is hazy and dreamlike, blending past and future. Chronologically, it's clearly in the past, pre-Elysium- but thematically, it's in the resolution of the arcs (and foreknowledge) of Elysium and Moirai. It's a blending of present tense, in the past, with a sense of the future. All and none, and hopefully giving a dream-like sensation.

Was I perfectly reliable in all of these? Hardly. I'm naturally inclined towards the past-passive tense and voice. But was there an intent with how voice and tense were to be used? Yup.

/

Also a related topic of ambiguity and 'not always what you thought they meant'- the Arc Words.

Arc Words: the really Super Significant promises that turned the story on its head and which a good part of the end-game revolved around. There's a lot of ambiguity about them, which is appropriate with the struggle of living up to promises. Arcs die before they go back on their word… but what does that really mean in practice? Do they only die if they choose to go against them? Is it a punishment for failure? For most of the story, it's treated as a horrible thing- so much so that Jaune metaphorically dies and adopts an Arc-free persona when he thinks he's broken the spirit of one, and the World turns in reverse when multiple Arc words are pitted against each other.

But the actual promises themselves are… pretty open ended. Jaune promises to wait for Ruby when he's in the alley behind's Tukson's shop after the murder. In a sense, he fulfilled that as soon as any time passed, because there was no time limit on how long or short he had to stay there- but at the same time, Jaune felt he violated the spirit of his Word, which is why it haunts him until the whole flashback deal with the train. Something similar happened when Jeane promised that Jaune would still be himself inside and that he wouldn't be alone in the end: you could think that it was true in the train because he was 'him' inside- Jaune Arc was whole once more- and because he wasn't alone (because he had the ghosts) (and he had you readers watching). But her Word isn't really fulfilled until Resh wakes up and takes Ruby's hand, because that's the point where things will be alright. So it's the spirit of the Word, and not simply the lawyering of it.

So the idea of the Arc Words, while potent, is also pretty lenient. As long as you try- and keep trying- you won't be struck down for broad promises. You'll even be helped as long as you try with the collective power of the Arcs- which fits the raised idea of how friends and family can help keep promises in one's stead. That is, admittedly, pretty forgiving… but very important, and appropriate, for a redemption story. That while there are limits, there's also a certain leeway for forgiveness so long as you keep trying. Puritanical moral absolutism, and legalistic justice, aren't the idea of the story- if it was, I wouldn't have kept things so ambiguous at a grammatical level.

/

Now, as for the inspiration for Arc Words-

My view on Semblances in general is that they're magical, related to the nature of the world of Remnant. While some are purely special effects (Ruby's speed, Blake's clones), some are 'conditionals.' 'Conditional' powers, in most fictional series, trade limitations for power: you must meet requirements to use them, or they have some drawback, but the stricter the requirement the more potent the power.

One of the better series to explore this and frame my thinking is the anime 'Hunter x Hunter,' which has some interesting similarities to the RWBY universe, including such things as being a death world where exceptional people can bring out aura powers and unique super-powers. Some people have general superpowers, but others have limitations in order to give themselves an edge. Yang's berserker semblance is an example of a conditional: her hair-trigger over her hair, and her berserker more-damage = more-power are both conditional powers. Another example would be Adam Tauros. Ever notice in 'Black' that he's always re-sheathing his sword, rather than keep swinging it free? In most series, that'd be an indicator of a conditional fighting style. If he kept his sword out, it'd probably be far, far weaker the longer he did. What makes them work like that? Why is he faster drawing his sword than people with an already unsheathed blade? Well, it's certainly not realism. It's basically magic.

So I peg the Arcs as 'conditional' users- in large part because of Jaune's (now overused) quote of 'not going back on his word.' It's an idea that goes quite well his sword and shield- the ideal shield being one that is unbreakable, like a good word, while swords have often been associated in used in various oath-giving ceremonies as both an enabler to keep a word and the reprisal if one fails it. Think of ritual suicides of apology in various cultures, including the saying 'fall on your sword.' It's not uncommon to have consequences/punishments built into a promise or contract in order to prove commitment and credibility needed to be believed. Think of a safety deposit when renting an apartment... or just think of the child's nursery rhyme 'Cross my heart and hope to die.' Combined with my earlier thoughts on weapons as a whole- and how Crocea Mors would be the extension of the Arcs as a whole- and you can see where I come to the idea of a family semblance that's a conditional power with severe consequences tied to the idea of promises. Is this purely a headcanon invention? Totally. Nothing in RWBY suggests anyone could have two semblances, or even that there's such a thing as family-inheritable semblances. But it's a concept I like enough to use for the purpose of this story.

Loopholes are important in stories about conditional powers- it's still magic, but magic with rules. Which brings back the idea of 'Deep Magic' and 'Deeper Magic.' Those are terms from The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe, which is also an inspiration for my view on conditional magic in most settings. 'Deep Magic' can be thought of as the rules of the World: the metaphysics of how magic works, and when it will. People who use conditional powers are tapping into the metaphysical laws of the world to empower their magic- but in exchange, they (and everyone else) is bound by those laws. In the Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe, the White Witch of Narnia, Jadis, was entitled by the Deep Magic to kill every traitor. If someone denied her this right, then all of Narnia would be overturned and perish in fire and water. So her conditional power, Narnia's destruction if someone stopped her from killing a traitor, was used to blackmail the Big Good of the setting, lion-Jesus Aslan, into ritually sacrificing himself in the place of an actual traitor. In the context of Arc Words, the Deep Magic is the consequence of Arcs going back on their Word: that the Arc would die before they go back on their words. For some, that just means an open-ended and never finished promise. For others, it would literally mean being struck down dead before they could break it.

So magic has rules. But what happens if the rules aren't fulfilled right? In the above example, the Big Good, Aslan, was innocent, but killed as a traitor. This is where Deeper Magic comes in. Deeper Magic is to Deep Magic what Deep Magic is to the plain magic- the rules for what happens when the rules are broken. In Narnia, the Deeper Magic was a secret rule: if an innocent sacrificed himself in the place of a traitor, the ritual table would be broken and death would work backwards. Bam, Aslan is alive. Combing back to Arc Words, the Deeper Magic is what happens when the Deep Magic is glitched. When the Arc Words couldn't be applied in Divide per Ciphra because of the paradox, the Deeper Magic is what rewound time and de-glitched things.

Is that an elaborate headcanon of the meta-physics? Certainly. Explained in story? Not really- and it didn't need to be. It's magic, not science, and the ambiguity is better for the character's limited understanding. It's not even critical to the character's progression for the story. And regardless, 'conditional' superpowers are a meta-thing in the first place. Consider Yang- if Yang loses hair without realizing it, would she go berserk? Or would she only go berserk if she realizes it? But if it is when she realizes, what if she thinks she lost hair, but actually didn't? Could, hypothetically, Jaune trigger Yang's semblance by cutting off his own hair and then showing her and telling her it was hers? And so on.

So, having talked about the power of Arc words, let's talk about how they impacted the story in the most controversial part of it all?

/

Just what happened in Divide per Ciphra? Stripped of the symbolism?

Here's the short version: it's all Jeane Arc's fault.

Here's the somewhat longer meta summary. All tell to the previous show. It's all Jeane Arc's fault, and **_[Jeane Arc]_** is a ghost with some unfinished business, unfulfilled Arc Words, and an idea so crazy it just might work.

Jeane's deathbed promise, besides spoiling the story's ultimate ending as early as chapter 16, had three parts: that he'd still be him (Jaune) inside when he woke up, that he wouldn't be alone in the end, and that things would be alright in the end. Justin John's rise after the Breach violates all of that: Justin John would be a lonely nihilist who never believes in anything or trusts in anyone else and would be forever alone, things would be about as far from 'alright' as they could be, and there won't be any sense of Jaune left inside him. Not even just Jaune, who as a common criminal will no longer be just Jaune after becoming Remnant's Most Wanted. Jeane's already dead, so she's already paid the consequence of her word breaking, but between being an actual ghost with unfinished business, being empowered by her Arc Word of that same promise to watch over Jaune, and possibly a bit of Jaune's ghostly semblance, Jeane is still able to act in this world, barely.

Jeane can be empowered by her Arc Words as long as she tries to fulfill her Word, but she's still just a ghost. Worse, without a sense of guilt about her or the connection to the family spirit symbolized by Crocea Mors, Jaune doesn't see her. The best she can do is have the other ghosts, ghosts he feels responsible for and can see, keep an eye on Jaune. If she's going to change things she needs help, needs someone real who can keep her word for her. Someone connected to Jaune.

Someone like Ruby, who's connected to Jaune by his promise, who's tied to his sense of guilt and vice versa, and who's asleep right as the stars align and the moon is right and Justin Jaune threatens to emerge. These are all Very Important because they are Meaningful and Magical and would make no sense in trying to explain from any in-universe perspective but they're totally Symbollic. Point is, Ruby is Jeane's last chance to save Jaune.

Jaune's promise to Ruby guaranteed that she'd be alive when she woke up, but she's not awake yet. And Ruby had promised Jaune that she'd come for him, as well as giving her word that she or her family stop him and whatever he had planned*. Obviously Jaune's promise will be fulfilled when Ruby wakes up safe in her cell after the Breach, while Ruby will live through her broken word.

(*Which, ironically, is his plan to die stopping the Breach. The Bad End is the various routes in which Jaune fails at this: where Ruby, trapped in her cell, can't call her family, who don't distract the White Fang guards and occupy Roman and Neo, which doesn't give Jaune the chance he needs to enter the engine room, which leads to Jaune waiting too long and living to witness the results of his actions (and inaction). The criminals never realize what he was trying to do, Jaune Arc dies inside from guilt and shattered faith because Ruby didn't keep her word about her or her family stopping him, Just Jaune fades away, and Justin John rises as he watches Vale burn. Bad End.)

So Jeane needs someone who can act in the land of the living, and is empowered by Arc Semblance (Crocea Mors) to bend the rules a bit to keep her Word and save Jaune because, you know, he's family. And we all love him. So Jeane enters Ruby's dream, because semblance-empowered ghosts can do that don't you know, and makes Ruby an offer without explaining her gambit.

What happens next is: Jeane promised Ruby it wasn't too late to save Jaune, in exchange for Ruby promising to take up Jeane's deathbed promise. Jeane in effect gives her Arc Word to Ruby, her Crocea Mors, to literally give Ruby the Arc Family semblance. But using the loophole abuse that her Crocea Mors is simultaneously Jaune's, and how she promised she'd look after him even beyond the grave, she's not giving Ruby the extension of her soul- she's giving Ruby the missing extension of _Jaune Arc's_ soul, the missing bit of him he gave up when he sold Crocea Mors back in chapter 1. Which, ignoring your shipping impulse, means that Ruby is in spirit an Arc at heart, which makes Ruby's own promises sacrosanct and unbreakable, and lets her tap into the Arc semblance to empower her to keep her word. With the Arc Words empowerment at her disposal, Ruby's potential if she had Crescent Rose would be… well, the stuff that Arc legends were made of. She might not be able to solo the entire train, but Team RWPY (Ruby, Weiss, Pyrrha, Yang) would have won. Easily. She'd rescue Jaune, stop the Beach, everyone would be happy until the political fallout, and so on.

But that would be boring. And she doesn't have Crescent Rose. And the train already left the station, Justin John has risen, and even if Ruby hasn't woken up it's too late now. So Jeane kills Ruby with Jaune's spiritual Crocea Mors, setting off a cascade effect of Arc Words playing against Arc Words, because at this point Ruby has been inserted into a three-way cycle of Arc Words.

Jeane's Word is broken if she kills Ruby right after she promising she can save Jaune. Ruby's Word is broken if she can't fulfill Jeane's deathbed promise, or if she fails to keep her own promises to Jaune. And Jaune's word (which guaranteed Ruby's survival) would be broken if Ruby dies, regardless of whether it's Jeane who kills her (in the dream) or from Ruby's failure to keep her word (if Jeane doesn't kill her, which would allow her to wake up, at which point her Word would be broken and so the World would kill her before she could break it, right before she could wake up) of if he does it himself (the extension of his own soul stabbing her). And if Jaune dies before redemption that would break Jeane's word (that it would be alright, that he wouldn't be alone in the end, etc.). And Ruby has taken up Jeane's Word in exchange for Jaune's soul, which would mean her Word is broken if Jeane's is, even if her own promise wasn't. Which would kill Ruby. Which would kill Jaune. You remember the rabbit hole.

In the end, all three of them would be made liars, and all three of them would have had to be killed, but at that point none of them can be. Jeane's already dead. Ruby is dead at Jeane's hand and the blade of Jaune's soul. And Jaune is more or less dead himself: the extension of him that is Arc is in Crocea Mors is in Ruby's heart and dies with her, the part of him that is just Jaune ceases to be when he's no longer just a common criminal, and what little of Jaune Arc is left is more or less snuffed out like a flame when Justin John rises. The World has no one to pre-emptively kill for breaking their word because of the paradox, and so the Deeper Magic takes it all back far enough that things go differently and no paradox forms. But, because Arc Words are unbreakable at a fundamental level, Ruby gets off with a bit of Jaune Arc's soul in her heart and has Arc words of her own.

Which, by the way, is a hidden tension in the Elysium arc if you put together the clues to realize the nature of Ruby's upgrade. If Ruby had given up- if she had agreed to Yang's demand to promise not to be a Huntress- she would have been going back on her Word(s), and would have been killed. Died of a heart attack right in front of Yang before she could make the promise. Wouldn't that have been fun for Resh to learn, considering they promised to make a weapon together? Might have even broke his heart killed him. Which would have-

Oh dear. Let's just be glad I steered clear of that paradox. Fortunately Arc Words don't get broken, unlike the minds of those who try to understand what happens if you try. Not that I blame you. I even drew a diagram for myself at one point.

/

Moving on to themes of the story…

'Not giving up' is the central one- or, in Monty Oum terms, 'Keep moving forward.' This is both for the characters in the story- Jaune, the criminal seeking redemption, Ruby, the redeemer who keeps failing to deliver- and for the Reader. 'Hope' is obviously in short supply, while 'Despair' is plentiful… but I'm of the viewpoint that Hope is most admirable not when you can see that you have a chance to succeed, but when don't. Anyone can face overwhelming odds when they think they can win- but how many people keep trying when they don't, or even after it seems too late? If Jaune, or Ruby, or the Reader, had given up when things seemed bleakest, then they wouldn't have earned, let alone reached, the happy ending.

'Chance' and 'choice' are obvious themes throughout the story, so much so I sometimes felt I was beating people over the head with the words. I wanted a moral of the story to be that Jaune's excuses for not having a chance were really a consequence of his choices. There were circumstances behind his fall, but costs and consequences didn't mean there wasn't a choice- that's just him rationalizing to himself, especially when Ruby kept popping up. Jaune's fall was supposed to be understandable, not admirable, and not inevitable. Likewise, Jaune's redemption is when he makes good choices despite not thinking he had a chance to survival, with the happy ending with Ruby in his next life being thematic reward for conquering his fears.

That in mind, Ruby represents a lot of things here: not just 'innocence,' but also 'help' and 'another chance' wrapped up in unconditional friendship. She's also tied into the motif of Weapons, which are the idea of the power that enables someone to be strong enough to have an honest chance to make a choice, rather than be so weak that the 'choices' one faces are between bad and worse. Every time Jaune and Ruby meet, Ruby offers to help Jaune leave his current path, to escape before it gets worse and to empower him as a better person. Every one of Ruby's scenes was edited and re-looked at half a dozen times to make her words more broadly applicable- to make her offer of friendship and help relate to Jaune's general situation, and not just the encounter of the hour. And every time, Jaune chooses otherwise and things go from bad to worse. Jaune's refusal to accept help (totally canonical) and take the chance and owning responsibility for his choices are his fatal flaws that Ruby calls him out on, even if part of his reason was that he was concerned for her wellbeing.

Until, of course, he realizes that his choice in enabling the Breach would have hurt her regardless (in principle, if not in deed), and so make the right choice and gives her a chance, and gets a bitter-sweet but ultimately happier ending in line with the song 'Gold,' with Ruby being narrator of it. His chance is starting all the way from the start by going back to school and making a new start, and new weapon, with Ruby, even if he had to do it under a new life.

Which fits the theme of death, and life after death, that occurs throughout the fic: Jaune symbolically 'dies' a half a dozen times across the story. When Jaune Arc becomes Just Jaune, when they fail to stop the Breach and become Justin John in the Bad End, when they (briefly) become Just Jaune Arc when they do stop the breach, when Just Jaune is put to rest, and when Jaune Arc gives way to Resh Kolc. And, implicitly, when one day he'll probably become Jaune Arc again, finishing the cycle.

/

Now for the totally not subtle Greek myth allusions. In mass.

Greek mythology was a useful unifier of the themes and ideas across the various arcs: the first, the pomegranate allusion to the Persephone was the myth and foreshadowing of Jaune being stolen away and trapped in the underworld for a (temporary) period of time. 'Underworld' was totally not subtle in its allusion of the criminal underworld as a literal and metaphorical underworld ala Greek Mythology, caves and three-themed guard dogs and all. (Cinder's Conspiracy, Roman's goons, and the White Fang being the three fears/guard dog that trap Jaune in his life of crime until he no longer fears them.) Ruby's marathon through the underground (again- marathon. Think of the origin of the word.) was an indirect allusion to other Greek myths of heroes who braved the underworld to find and retrieve people, though hers was a bit more successful than most. Elysium, the epilogue at Beacon, was the Greek idea of an ideal paradise in the afterlife that virtuous mortal heroes would go to- appropriate both as an afterlife allusion for the nominal after-fic conclusion, with the extra points that not only did Ruby leave rather than stay there, but people who recognized the Elysium myth might have been clued in by how absent Jaune was, when he should have been there in spirit, so to speak.

The chapter title "Lethean Field' refers how Elysium was bordered by the River Lethe- the river of forgetfulness. It wasn't just an indicator about how virtuous souls would end up in Beacon- it's the point that 'Red Like Roses', which implies Jaune's death, is forgotten/washed away in favor of 'Wings,' which doesn't, and a separate hint the memories were somewhat suspect (even as they were enough for a bitter-sweet resolution).

'Leaving Elysium' makes a (too subtle, in retrospect) allusion to Beacon as the Blessed Isle. For those unfamiliar, Elysium is broken into two main areas: the Elysium Fields (including the Lethean Field), which is for the generally virtuous, and the Islands of the Blessed. Elysium was reserved the exceptionally virtuous and heroes of legend, but unless you were a demi-god, to get to the Isle of the Blessed you had to choose to be reincarnated and earn your way into Elysium over three lives. If you consider Beacon the metaphor for Elysium, and would consider Jaune Arc deserving one ticket in (for virtue) and Just Jaune a second ticket in (for becoming a legend, and Cinder's help), then Jaune's absence (and Ruby's 'won't find who she's looking for- yet') can be seen as the hint for the third incarnation- Resh- who will really get in.

(Admittedly that's really heavy on the meta. I didn't expect anyone to think of it that much unless I made Jaune's survival blatantly obvious too early- which is why I'm having this post-mortem.)

Now for the Moirai Arc, Ozpin/Ironwood/Qrow. Also the best part for subtle meta-puns that no one caught. Like how it's the Post-Jaune Arc arc.

The Moirai were the Three Fates who spun, allotted, and ultimately snipped life and people's fates. Remember how Jaune 'waited for his Fate'? Qrow spins a yarn (a lie), Ironwood draws its measure when he sees through and challenges it, but Ozpin does _not_ cut Resh Kolc's brief life short by choosing to call Qrow on it. Qrow is a cheating Fate - which is what he does for Jaune, helping him cheating fate. (Or, if you prefer- the Grimm Reaper is a cheating death helping Jaune cheat death.) In the context of Resh/Jaune, whose life and fate is being decided, Qrow is Clotho (the spinner, the one spins the thread of life- the creation of Resh), Ironwood is Lachesis (the allotter, the one who determined length- Ironwood's willingness to confront 'Resh' immediately), and Ozpin is Atropos (the inevitable, the one who cuts the thread- though note that Ozpin does NOT cut Resh short, but gives two years, and so 'the inevitable' also refers to Resh/Jaune going to Beacon like they always would). Unlike the Elysium meta-symbology, this one was easier and more blatant.

And finally, giving Ren's father the code-name Lethe in the Metempsychosis chapter. Lethe was the river in the underworld that flowed around the cavern of Hypnos in the underworld. Not only was Hypnos the Greek personification of sleep (an important idea considering Jaune and Jeanne's promises regarding waking up), but people who drank from the river Lethe were said to suffer from complete forgetfulness. Guess what Elysium residents had to do in order to be reincarnated?

Oh, and those references in Gold, and the song lyric about 'turning what you touch into gold.' Guess where the Midas touch originates? Yep- greek myth once again.

Also, did you look up Metempsychosis? Metempsychosis is the greek term that refers to the transmigration of the soul at death into another body of different or same species. IE, reincarnation. Except it's totally Greek.

Is your mind blown by the pretentious symbolism and Greek theme? You almost wouldn't believe how much of that wasn't accidental or retroactive justification.

/

The Myth That Matters Most: The Abduction of Persephone

But all that's just flair to the most important (but least explicit) Greek reference: Ruby's role in the context of Jaune and the Pomegranate metaphor. If Jaune is Perephone, stolen into the underworld and trapped due to eating the seeds of a forbidden fruit (shout out to something I didn't make clear- Sun totally stole the Pomegranate back, hence the why Sun tosses a half-eaten pomegranate- a hint he wasn't really trapped), then Ruby is an equally important actor. Most people who remember the myth as 'Persephone and Demeter'- but there was a third key player as well.

In the myth, when Persephone was abducted to the underworld, she cried for help- but the only one who could hear was the Goddess Hecate. Hecate wasn't able to stop the abduction, but she found the family that was looking for her (Demeter, Hecate's mother- analogous to Jeane, Jaune's sister) and together the two worked to rescue Persephone despite the fact that neither was strong enough to do so by force. They ultimately appealed to higher powers (who are family) for intervention, but there are laws that even the most powerful fixers can't challenge (Zeus can't go against rules of Fate, Qrow can't openly break Kingdom law). Because of what's happened in the Underworld Persephone can't get away scott free. Demeter threatens to ruin the world with a famine (Jeane's gambit of Arc Words are threatened to break- which the Divide per Ciphra chapter indicated was Serious Business that could not be allowed to happen), until a compromise solution is proposed. Persephone can't fully escape the underworld and the consequence, (Jaune Arc can't be free and in public), but she none the less becomes one of the first (and only) people in Greek mythology to be rescued from the underworld after being taken their unwillingly.

Even though it's not a perfect ending for those involved- even though Persephone is only back half the time (even though Jaune is only half back with his mind-wipe)- it's a happy ending, and as a result Persephone and Hecate become close friends and inseparable companions, with Hecate accompanying Persephone into the Underworld when Persephone is forced to go under (Ruby takes the same sort of mind-wipe that Jaune does), but also taking Persephone back out and being a close companion ever after (Ruby being Jaune's friend/partner at Signal).

Ruby isn't Jaune's Demeter- Ruby is Jaune's _Hecate_.

So… yeah. The entire story of 'A Common Criminal or Something' is basically me being a hack writer and putting a RWBY twist to Greek myth and framework, with my own twist and style and other themes and ideas kneaded in. It's not so much that I built the story around the myth, but after reviewing it I realized how close the influences were, and went with them- including Jaune's (successful but imperfect) escape from the underworld rather than dying. It's a myth about the triumph of love over death- not sexual love, but agape, both by Detemeter (familial love) and Hecate (a virtuous stranger and voluntary champion turned close friend). Or, as they correspond here- Jeane (the hidden actor) and Ruby (the champion).

It's not a perfect metaphor, not a perfect correlation for the myth, but consider this: among her other roles, Hecate was a goddess associated with holding torches (the beacons of light for those lost in the dark: ie, Jaune, who without the arc/light in his eyes lost his path), the moon (which Ruby and Jaune both have strong thematic and imagery ties to, though it rarely came up in the story), ghosts (which is upheld more by Jaune, but Ruby gets to hear **_[Jeane]_** , and magic (including necromancy, which also applies to Jeanne's semblance that Ruby starts to pick up, and the Rose Songs). Hecate was also, and this was very rare and remarkable in Greek myth, a _virgin_ goddess- which underlines the non-romantic nature of the Ruby/Jaune relationship, and of agape love beating death and the underworld.

It should be no surprise that Hecate was often cast in a role as a savior or protector goddess… and did I mention that she was also associated with crossroads? The oldest symbolic representation of 'choice'?

So yes, Ruby is Jaune's Hecate. And Just liking Hecate didn't go after Persephone for the chance to bone, I'd consider the Ruby-Jaune relationship to be pure _agape_ \- love, in the sense of benevolence/empathy/good will/affection for friends and family. Not the romantic sort. At no point in the story, for Ruby or Jaune, is romantic attraction ever indicated or raised as a motivation or desire. This is not, and never was, a shipping fic.

Now, as for how many people recalled or saw any continuing parallels to the myth of Persephone, rather than see the pomegranate allusion as a one-off thing… that answer is sadly none. No doubt because Jaune was such a dominant viewpoint, it'd be hard to see except in retrospect. After all, no one tells the myth of Persephone from Persephone's viewpoint. And the role of other themes and symbolism in the story helps obscure the source material. And there's the events that don't really correspond, which blurs the line. There's nothing obvious about it, even in retrospect.

I could have tried to make it blatantly obvious, I suppose… but this is one of those things that probably works not at all in practice, but better in retrospect from an outsider's perspective.

Too subtle to be able to claim to be subtle, if you would. But a cool thing to reveal in the post-mortem.

/

On happy endings…

Even if Lancaster shippers could hope for the future… Ruby and Resh/Jaune are in mourning now. And have two years to go before Beacon and memory drama and all that sort of stuff would start. Save it for after the two start getting over some significant emotional trauma. For now, Just Friends- Jaune is lucky enough to have survived, and Ruby is the selfless friend to have given him a chance at life, and they both need time to heal and recover and then deal with the memories together as friends. If you really insist on thinking of pair-ups, think in terms of them going to Beacon in two years.

I was seriously considering not giving them that much- in my mind, the story originally (first outline) ended with Ruby and Yang in Beacon, where the butterfly effects of Jaune's life (and actual death) of crime were revealed- Yang was to be the only survivor of a team RWBY where Ruby was never present, Cinder and her cohort were captured by Ozpin and Ironwood thanks to Jaune's post-mortem confession, and where Ruby was the only one who would remember how Jaune was a hero in the end, because everyone else would just remember him as the common criminal who got cold feet. It was a 'greater good' ending, better for the world, but not better for Jaune or the RWBY primary cast. The only hope-spot was that Ruby wouldn't give up, and because of that Yang wouldn't either- and even Yang was questionable, since it might just have been her being protective.

'Gold' convinced me to make it a more uplifting ending, so I tempered the bitter and the sweet and gave more hope instead. Team PWBY is destroyed and RWBY is impossible- but Yang will be back, it's ambiguous if Weiss is the injured person (who could thus still play a role in the future), and Blake's 'death' is made less clear when Jaune's assumption is challenged by Qrow. Even at the Meta level, I'm going to demure on that: Jaune's semblance is tied to ghosts, but also guilt, so it can work either way. The Adam Tauros scenes, which I was iffy about, were deliberately vague on what happens to Blake so that Jaune's assumption doesn't get answered by Adam, and in Divide per Ciphra Ruby didn't see Blake's ghost despite seeing Tukson and Sun. You can choose whatever interpretation you'd like from that.

The Breach is stopped, but Cinder escapes to plan again. Jaune and Ruby get to be friends, but the cost of the chance is Qrow having their memories scrubbed in order to keep Jaune's survival a secret. Ruby thinks Jaune is dead, and while the extent to which Jaune's memories have been changed is vague, everything he associated with Ruby is replaced, for the moment, with a fictional childhood friend who died saving him. It's unsustainable, as indicated by Ren's father, Ruby fighting off the despair 'Red Like Roses' which relied on the false-memories, and the fact that 'Resh' calls her Ruby without her being introduced by name. That promises to unravel by or about the time they get to Beacon… but at least they have a chance to live that happy ending for awhile. Until two years pass, at least, and fate brings all the pieces and people back into play.

Rule of Drama, obviously.

Amusingly enough, one thing did change for the worst and get edited-in during the posting phase was the idea that Pyrrha was the fourth member of the Team RWBY that wasn't. That wasn't the original plan- originally Pyrrha's only mention was that she was the tournament front-runner after the Breach didn't occur, while the fourth member was an ambiguous KIA who was never identified and could have been any random stranger. But it was raised in the comments section that without Jaune and Ruby than Weiss really might have made her intended partner, and after thinking on it I agreed. Ren and Nora were easily ignorable by being a part of some other random team, since they have no role in the plot to speak of, but Pyrrha and Weiss didn't need to be loose ends. Plus, Team Puberty. Hehe.

(Nora has no appearance at any point, but Ren is intended to be the bartender at the Club when Jaune re-visits. He was a hint at doing undercover spy work on Crow's behalf, but in my head it was also a subtle nod to the various 'Jaune is a bartender' fics out there. I like to imagine that Ren didn't know what he was getting involved into, but needed the money for Nora-related reasons.)

/

On ending certain characters (or- why did you kill X in the way you did?)

One of the bigger (and yet less controversial) twists of 'A Common Criminal or Something' as an AU was the use of character death. The three main character deaths- Sun, Tukson, and Blake- were key moments in Jaune's fall and figures of his guilt, haunting both his conscience and as a part of his semblance.

That said, though… in many respects character killings were a meta-concern aimed at the audience, not Jaune. Few people noticed or cared about the mentions of Jaune hurting people- faceless, nameless people that I admittedly didn't put much (any) focus on. But the character deaths, they marked clear and decisive points away from the canon, even as the story handrailed the general sequence of canon events. The story was recognizable- many people recognized that the Breach was coming- but the use of character death cast the future in doubt.

Sun's death was the decisive break from canon compatibility. At pretty much any point before the docks, Jaune's story as a common criminal could have had a quick and happy ending: if Jaune had taken Ruby's hand at any point before then, before he'd gotten into real trouble, then Qrow could have smoothed things over in exchange for Jaune's confession and then Jaune would have been a student at Signal within weeks, and with Qrow and Ruby watching out for him he'd have been safe from the mob and White Fang. Things would have gone, if not exactly as canon, close enough- Ruby and Penny would have gone to the docks, Ruby would have interfered with Roman, Penny would have won the battle. Sun would have survived, Sun being around would have tempered Blake's obsession, and eventually Blake would have gone back to Team PWBY and things would have been close to canon. Happy enough ending overall.

Sun's death was meant to be a wake-up call about where this fic would be going. Technically, Sun doesn't mean that much to Jaune- Sun's role is more of the wakeup call that what Jaune's doing is dangerous, and to trash Jaune's rationalizations that he was being a good-ish person keeping people safe and out of harm's way. For the reader, who understands this is an AU, the implications of Suns death were an important piece of the drama of wondering what was happening off-screen with the main cast- wondering about the fallout over Blake- but for Jaune, Sun was the first fatal casualty who showed just how dangerous Jaune's path was going. Sun's death at Roman's hands, aside from allowing demonstration of Roman's racism (disrespecting the corpses) and contrasting it to Jaune's lack of it, was a useful way to demonstrate that Jaune's seemingly 'common criminal' boss was just as dangerous as the White Fang terrorists.

The second death, Tukson, wasn't itself a divergence from canon- Tukson dies regardless- but his death is the moment when Jaune truly has blood on his hands and isn't the innocent goofball we started with. Beforehand, even if Sun was dead, Jaune could have gotten out and been recognizable: Qrow might have had a harder time post-Sun, but the glimpse at Cinder and the conspirators would have been worth a deal. But after Tukson, and especially in conjunction with Mercury and Emerald, Jaune is truly tangled in the life of crime. Just as Tukson's death in Season 2 set the stage for the tone change between RWBY Season One (which was mostly light-hearted and focused on Grimm) and Season Two (which had darker themes), Tukson's death in Common Criminal set the stage for Jaune's despair and fatalism to manifest as Just Jaune. A similar transition point for both, which better indicated the increasing divergence between canon and Common Criminal.

Blake's 'death' was important as an emphasis of how things were going further (and worse) from canon, but her capture was important to (re)introduce the role of uncertainty and assumption into the narrative that would pay off later, It was uncertainty that could be for the better, rather than for the worse. Technically, Tukson is the last named character confirmed to be killed in the story- which is rather surprising when you look back on it, considering how much more death seems to follow Jaune by the end. But it's true- Jaune's guilt over Blake is more important than whether Blake is actually dead or not, and it reflects the limits (and implicit biases) of relying on the limited perspectives. Jaune's imagination and memory are enough to convince him about Blake's death- which was an initial dry-run of the same sort of conviction and survivor guilt that Ruby had later. It's not that Blake's ambiguity was foreshadowing for the memory wipes, but rather that Blake's 'death', firmly believed but not necessarily true, set a precedent for how Ruby could be wrong later.

Ruby's death in Divide per Ciphra was a highly symbolic affair all around. At this point you like it or you loathed it, and I won't try to change how you feel about it, but it occurrence (and reversal) were a decisive reversal point for the story in tone and direction.

Pyrrha/Weiss are another version of that idea of ambiguous state of life and death. One of them is dead, one of them is alive, but as far as Common Criminal is concerned it wasn't important which was which. In fact, it's important that it could be either: at this point in the narrative we were on the rising action, the increasingly optimistic half, and so it's honestly up to the reader's preference about which was which. It's bitter-sweet, it's not a perfect outcome, but it still offers a little bit of hope about your favorite character being alive.

/

Why Jaune's death/not-death wasn't a Deus Ex Machina.

Because it really wasn't.

'Deus Ex Machina' isn't short-hand for 'plot twist I didn't expect that worked in my favor' or 'a solution I didn't see coming.' It refers to a specific narrative device in which an otherwise insurmountable problem is suddenly resolved without forewarning by a newly introduced something. One of the two key requirements for a Deus Ex Machina is that it can't be foreshadowed- and the other is that it has to resolve an otherwise irresolvable problem. If it lacks either of these, it's not really a DEM- if it's previously foreshadowed, it's a chekov's gun. If it doesn't fix the unresolvable problem, it fails to provide the function of a DEM.

There _is_ a Deus Ex Machina in 'Common Criminal or Something'- but it's in the mid-fic, in Divide per Ciphra. Arc Words weren't a DEM, but the implications of breaking them- the fact that the paradox would be unwound by rolling back time- that was. The DEM in Divide per Ciphra is that she gets another chance by time manipulation. It's not foreshadowed, not really, and the ability resolves an otherwise insurmountable problem.

That doesn't apply to Jaune's death. The memory wipe comes closer, but even it isn't quite.

Jaune's death is the easiest- he never actually died. I didn't tell you he died- Jaune thought he was going to, Ruby believed he did, and Qrow claimed it- but, objectively, I the narrator never told you he died. I led you towards the conclusion, encouraged it with the buildup (and naming) of Dirge and Ruby's (tampered) perspective, but the rest was ambiguous language and letting you trip yourselves. Was it a reasonable trip? Yes. Could you have realized something was up during the Elysium arc, even before Moirai? Also yes.

The means of Jaune's not dying is very simple: Qrow was the Grimm Reaper who entered the engine room.

Which is pretty far from a DEM, since Qrow's presence was explicitly indicated, if not by name, by the fact that there was a Reaper on the train even though Ruby had lost Crescent Rose. There's only one other scythe-user of note in the RWBY setting, and that's Qrow, who was also indicated by the family (and not just sister) Ruby mentioned earlier and how she tried to call him during the bad end. Qrow was present, Qrow has the power, and if you remembered animal biology you'd remember that a 'talon' is only associated with birds of prey- and were an anatomical impossibility for land Grimm. Jaune was prepared to die, but he wasn't dead yet, and Qrow wasn't going to let him. Qrow isn't a DME, since he was previously established.

On the other hand, about that memory wipe, which is independent of Jaune's survival…

That is closer to being a deus ex machina, but it's not quite. Not in the same way that Jaune's survival was- not in the sense of a chekov's gun- but by failing to meet the role of a deus ex machina: resolving an insurmountable problem.

The reveal of the mind wiping wasn't quite out of nowhere- even though I never went into it, there were clues and indicators that something was off. And I'm not just talking about Jaune referring to mind-altering semblances when he was looking for his family's ghosts in the train either.

Elysium's dialogue when it came to Jaune was focused on Ruby's memory- but also hinting that there were issues and glitches with it. That was a major point of the dissonance with the Rose Songs, when Red Like Roses 2 (which remembered death) was replaced by Wings (which didn't). The phrase 'lingered like incense' was a clue, especially in the context of Elysium 1- when Ruby reveals she's felt that ever since The Breach-That-Wasn't (ie, since her mind-wipe), and that it feels so wrong because deep down part of her knows it's not right, but for the life of her she can't remember why not. The whole point of 'Red Like Roses 2' is that Ruby is rebelling and resisting the false memories- albeit, not understanding why. Even her flashback to Jaune's death broke **_[_** _appropriate flashback formatting **]**_.

And hey. I _did_ outright tell you "Jaune did **_not_** die in vain." And then finished off with 'I may fall,' which is a song about them NOT falling. Not like they could have.

(No, really- it's not like they could have, because that's not what happened. Ambiguous double-interpretation wording, go!)

So the memory issues had a bit of prior indication- and they weren't outside of what had already been established either. Tying semblances into the mind had already happened earlier in the story on a few modest, subtle, occasions. Jaune's ghosts were something that sometimes only he could see- indicating a mental angle. Ruby's experience with Divide per Ciphra, and her losing most of her memory of it except in a vague dream, was a more practical (if unspoken) example of experience and knowledge being wiped away by semblance-magic of sorts.

Not quite a chekov's gun. But the _capability_ was already established, and Ruby's experience gave clues that her mind and perception weren't quite right.

But that's not where the mind wipe really fails the Deus Ex Machina test. The mind-wipe fails because _it doesn't solve the problem._

By the time the DEM is revealed, both Jaune and Ruby have already surpassed their character delimmas and completed their character arcs. Jaune has accepted his life of crime and is willing to accept the consequences and whatever judgement awaits him, whatever the source- Grimm, police, or vengeful criminals. Qrow deciding to mind-wipe doesn't change that resolution. You could argue that the mind-wipe is a DEM in that it prevents Ruby from being at odds with Ozpin and the Kingdoms… but that's not the problem posed or pending by the time of the reveal. The existence of the mind-wipe **_creates_** the final narrative problem for Ruby- to challenge her idealism and willingness to be a Huntress- and she surpasses it with her idealism in check without discovering the memory tampering. Without a DEM, she'd still be a good person- she'd just be a good person who'd be at odds with the system that locked Jaune away (if he survived), or she'd overcome the same grief and master her idealism (if he died).

The problem that the mindwipe is supposed to solve isn't hiding Jaune from the enemies so much- it helps, but the disguise of 'Resh' and Qrow's protection help with that. It was to hide Jaune's survival from Ozpin and Ironwood- who, if you remember in Moirai 1, approach Torchwick's secret survival by throwing him into a dark pit without a trial so that no one will ever find him, and only considering letting him out if he can break the conspiracy. That reaction doesn't surprise Qrow- and he knows Jaune can't do that, so Jaune could expect the same sort of treatment. Hidden away in a cell because his death is more convenient to countering the conspiracy, denied a future to attempt atonement despite redemption in an unjust mockery of justice.

But Qrow's deception _doesn't work._ Ironwood and Ozpin see through it- and so Qrow has to intervene personally. It's not the memory wipe, but Qrow's stand, that solves the problem of letting Jaune not only survive, but live a better life.

So the mind wipe doesn't work as a Deus Ex Machina because not only does it not come out of nowhere (prior indicators), but because it doesn't resolve the insurmountable problem (because it doesn't). It is, more appropriately, an 11th hour plot twist.

Why have a plot twist at the eleventh hour? Well, keeping you guessing through the end is fun. But it helps resolve some themes of the story, including not giving up, redemption, and taking chances. It fulfills all the Arc Words- that Jaune would still be himself inside when he woke up, that he wouldn't be alone in the end (of the story), that it would be alright, even as Jaune promised that he himself wouldn't be there. It finished the rising tide of optimism of a generally bitter story with a bitter-sweet ending that was sweeter than bitter.

It also keeps an eye to the future and sets up the prospect of the sequel and drama therein- the two-year timeskip and the resumption of the story of what Ruby's Year One adventures would be, even though things have changed so much. Most of the post-Breach arcs were built around aiming for that in the future: Ruby, Yang, and Resh going to Beacon, where they'll have to confront not only the renewed conspiracy but deal with their pasts. You might also remember that the Bad End was the first part in the story to make that reference- that Ruby and Jaune would meet again in two years, but not as the person friend she carelessly threw away.

Well… sequel foreshadowing! In the mid-story!

I'll probably never write that sequel, mind… but I wrote with the idea that the story doesn't end, there's just a point where the story teller stops talking.

/

Now, for how the Beacon plots more or less moved in the background parallel to Jaune's story, since Jaune's perspective is highly limited and occasionally unreliable…

Obviously divergence point 1 is Jaune distracting Ruby in the store. Ruby doesn't get Ozpin's attention, doesn't go to Beacon, and Jaune obviously isn't there either to pair up with Pyrrha and make the teams. Ren and Nora are their own thing, as per canon, which leaves the rest.

I imagine that team PWBY (which may or may not have been their official name, but I can't imagine Yang dropping the idea of 'Team Puberty' ) was a powerful but volatile mix that couldn't quite stick together without Ruby- they were close because they were all ultimately good people, but Pyrrha lacks Ruby's stabilizing emphasis that would have helped keep them a good team. Blake and Weiss would have been a bit more at odds, Pyrrha too meek to intervene, while Yang was the one left to play Team Mom and the de-facto Team Leader. She tries, but Blake and Weiss come to a head about faunus, and Blake goes on her White Fang obsession.

Which brings us to Divergence Point 2- the night at the docks with Jaune stopping Ruby from intervening right when Roman has Sun at gunpoint.

Ruby doesn't get hurt/sucker-shot by Roman, but the important consequence is that Sun dies because Ruby isn't there to intervene and get hurt/sucker-shot by Roman when Roman has Melodic Candle right in his face. This sends Blake further into a guilt trip, and without friend/team-leader Ruby on scene as Blake gets even more guilt-angst towards the White Fang, Blake never returns to Beacon. Even though Weiss would eventually cool down and try to find Blake, Yang/Weiss/Pyrrha have few leads of their own and no plan on how to take down the White Fang to try and find Blake. Weiss can tap into her Father's anti-White Fang efforts, and Yang can ask Uncle Qrow for help, and Pyrrha would be open to asking Headmaster Ozpin directly for help or leads, but Team WYP (Wipe) can't quite catch up to or cross paths with Blake, who is doing her own one-woman army thing against the White Fang.

Had I made another viewpoint character, Blake would have been one to serve as a negative foil for Jaune during the Underworld arc- sort of seeing his impacts on the White Fang from the outside, and serving as parallel development. It would have been angsty and hard for her, with the bad breakup of team PWBY contrasting with the only good human-faunus interactions and co-existence she could see being the sort between Jaune and the White Fang. (Which was an idea I hinted at but never really developed- the White Fang was more of a context than an actor in Jaune's story.)

Jaune would have been the target of an curiosity/interest that turned into obsession/hatred once Jaune's tie to Sun's death was revealed- something along the lines of Jaune taking responsibility (but seeming to take credit) for Sun's death because he'd spotted the suspicious banana before the fight and hadn't intervened. That little Arc would have been a few foreshadowings before Jaune more or less being kidnapped and interrogated by Blake, with Blake's vengeance/guilt-driven morality crusade being the foil to Jaune's guilt-driven fatalism and thirst for power to have a choice. The two would have argued over what they both perceived as their own lack of choice vis-a-vis the other person's choice in living a bad life. Blake thinks she has no choice but to address the White Fang herself, even though she has a home: Jaune is choosing to go down this life of crime, even though he believes he can't escape. Blake would ultimately intend to turn Jaune in to the cops and intend return to PWBY because at least she still had the chance and a home to go back to, but before she could have Jaune would have killed her (or helped his criminal allies kill her), choosing to stay in the underworld rather than be dragged out and thrown in jail and worse.

Ultimately that entire arc was dismissed as too distracting. A new viewpoint character aside, it got in the way of the Rally and the train scene and I couldn't think of a good Ruby or Adam scene afterwards like I wanted. Adam's role depended on being the anti-Ruby with a touch of ambiguity about Blade, while Ruby's call-out would have been undermined if Jaune already had it from Blake before killing her. File that in the 'could have been' folder.

Instead, Blake's loose end is rolled up when Jaune spots Blake and is responsible for her capture at the Rally. This, not Tukson, is the real divergence point 3 from canon- the White Fang and their stolen military hardware isn't exposed. Thanks to Jaune's interference (and removing Ruby's repeated interferences), the Breach plan is on schedule and going smoother than canon. Which results in Ozpin (who's hearing the rise of Just Jaune and knows his plans aren't working well) and Yang (who's worried about Blake) to reach out for the mysterious Uncle Qrow, Ruby's uncle and teacher at Signal.

If I had a chance to redo that scene, after some feedback, I think I would change it slightly so that Jaune was more involved in Blake's capture. Not simply from the cockpit of the mech- though that had a thematic point in indicating how Jaune was practically watching his own life go by without being personally involved- but something along the lines of being involved in tripping/tackling her in her attempted escape. Jaune would have been a goon on a catwalk below the window, Blake would have shot out the lights, but when she makes for the window he can see her golden eyes in the darkness from the light coming in the window and manages to check/tackle her awkwardly. Neo subdues her, Blake's still dragged away as Jaune can't help but look her in the eyes, and Jaune gets lauded as a hero by the White Fang on stage even as the guilt begins to grow.

/

Qrow deserves his own section. He's the reason why Jaune's survival is not a deus ex machina- Qrow's role was foreshadowed, mentioned, and even referenced a few times. It was just very subtle.

Qrow is the most subtle actor in the story, so much so that despite various foreshadowings no one actually mentioned him in the reviews until Crossing Styx, and only one person remembered and guessed him as the Grimm Reaper during the Dirge finale. Even some of the most perceptive reviewers forgot about him. Since Jaune had no insight on him and no direct contact with him, it was pretty hard to hint at his involvement without being too blatant. The clues had to be in the showing, not the telling.

Qrow (foreshadowed by Ruby's early references to her uncle helping Jaune, the Ozpin flash and the mention of Jaune's dossier, the 'little bird' that was telling PWBY where to hit, Ruby's reference to her family (plural) and not just Yang in her jail cell confrontation with Jaune, and by the 'Reaper with a corgi' when Ruby's scythe was missing) is the ticket/plot device that helps bring the Breach train scene back together somewhere resembling canon, even though Ruby isn't at Beacon and team PWBY is too focused looking for Blake to care about Beacon classes or Dance drama.

This is actually how it comes back together, because Yang seeks out Qrow's help to track the White Fang and look for Blake because he's an intel guru with leads into the underworld. For similar reasons, Ozpin also called Qrow in during Underworld when Jaune was rising up the ranks, in hopes that Qrow would be able to make things happen. Such as helping place Ren as a bartender/informant in Junior's club, right in time for when Jaune to come back for a visit to talk about the shipsments for the Beach. Ozpin has already called in Qrow because the worrying progress of Cinder's conspiracy, Qrow has the dimmest of leads on the White Fang, and Qrow brings along Team WYP to Mountain Glenn to investigate, with Qrow replacing the Beacon faculty professor of canon.

Qrow, a smart guy who I see as putting family above friends and being more 'good' than 'lawful', has put various pieces together and pegged Jaune as (a) Ruby's friend (Jaune's claims, and the fact that he kept Ruby out of trouble and a burglary that Qrow would have been investigating because Torchwick, even if Ruby wasn't aware), (b) involved in the Roman/White Fang/Cinder conspiracy (the meeting with Ruby at the docks and the dust robberies, ties to Torchwick and Mercury/Emerald, and the Tukson event), and (c) alive and not entirely happy to be a part of his life of crime (Jaune's post-Tukson confession to Ruby, the fact that he was moved by someone else, and that bartender!Ren would be in a place to hear about Jsune's departure from the Club).

So Qrow brings Ruby to Mountain Glenn as well, nominally because Team RWPY could use an extra person but actually because Qrow has a vague idea of using Ruby's friendship with Jaune to turn him if the possibility arises. It's not that Ruby being captured and talking to Jaune is part of the plan, but the fact that Jaune releases her safe and sound with both a key and her scroll to pass on information more or less proves to Qrow that Jaune is the real deal of someone stuck in a bad situation.

Oh, and Qrow may actually have promised the Arcs that he'd try to take Jaune in, but failed to reach him in time- I'll leave that part of Resh's backstory as another ambiguously vague thing and neither confirm nor deny it.

After breaking out of the jail thanks to Jaune, Ruby's divergence from the Bad Future (where she didn't) isn't so much what she does- it's her calling on her family and Yang's team to do what she can't, fulfilling her Word on her behalf. In the Bad Future, Qrow and Team PWY miss the train. Here, they make it… but they're understrength, Jaune's interference at the Rally means that the White Fang has another Paladin and more strength, and Jaune is trying to focus all the defenders (Roman and the White Fang) in the rear and away from the engine that he's planning to stop. So they get mauled. Yang is rescued by Raven because You-Suspect-Why, but Weiss and Pyrrha aren't so lucky. One is crippled, the other is dead, and even if I have a thought I'll leave it up to the reader to decide which they prefer. At this point in the story, we were clearly on the 'tension but more optimistic' side of things, so even your casualties are left to your preference.

After Jaune stops the train, Qrow makes his way forward to secure the victory. He captures Roman (who jumped ship and tried to flee rather than hole up in the train car awaiting certain death), which is a major coup in his efforts to find who's behind the conspiracy. He saves/stabilizes Weiss or Pyrrha, and has them guard Roman. And he (and Zwei) also finds Jaune... which is a major complication.

If people realizes that Roman was captured alive, then the Qrow's advantage on the conspiracy (of them not knowing that he knows things) will be lost. But the thing is, Jaune's survival threatens that. If Jaune is spotted walking around in public, not only might someone realize the implications that he survived by virtue of being the betrayer, but his survival would open the door to realizing Roman's survival. Which, again, threatens the Qrow's advantage.

So the survival of both Jaune and Roman needs to be a secret. The world can be fooled with a news report, but Jaune would be recognizable to the local criminal underworld and Cinder's conspiracy if he's walking about free in Vale and in the company of Huntresses as an implicit snitch. (Which, if you remember, Cinder was already concerned and talking to Roman about.) If Cinder realizes just how much she's been exposed, she could really go to ground and escape their notice for real. Especially after her escape when Emerald and Mercury are captured. Qrow doesn't want to take the risk that his flimsiest advantage might be compromised if she realizes the implications of Jaune's survival.

And that's not even touching how being found alive would put Jaune's life in danger- and, by extension, Ruby. Who, by the time she shows up and finds Jaune passed out but alive, damn well isn't going to be separated. Where Jaune goes, she'll go, or kick up a storm and blow the secret trying. So, short of killing Jaune and his niece, Qrow has three main options. He could let Jaune be arrested and put into isolation like Roman, hidden and locked away for his own protection. Problem is, Ruby would kick up a storm against the injustice, almost certainly blowing the secret. He could send Jaune way out into the boonies, exiled but alive and not in jail. That's less of a problem… but Ruby would probably follow him. Or he could try to hide in plain sight while covering up his survival.

He doesn't choose option A. You can take your pick as to why: because Ruby, because Jaune is redeemed, because he promised the Arcs, because he knows about the power of Arc Words, because he's not an asshole, or all of the above. But if he's going to do B or C, he needs to hide Jaune's survival from friends and foe alike: Ozpin and Ironwood would sooner exploit Jaune (and Ruby) as a pawns for the greater good than let them live in peace. They aren't totally fooled- Qrow's deception against them fails- but Qrow's made his choice and there are better things to do in the meantime than pick a fight over someone in Qrow's control and who will fall to into theirs soon enough. Thus a two-year break before Jaune no longer his ward and things start moving again.

So Jaune gets a hair dye and hair cut, and contacts to make him look not at all like Jaune Arc. (But, ironically, look like a blend of Jaune Arc and Justin Jaune: the red contacts much like the glasses, and the black buzzcut matching a black bowler hat.) But Qrow's knows there's a risk of Jaune revealing and exposing himself on accident, which means his memories need to be altered for the time being. But even if he stays, Ruby could be the one to accidentally expose him.

When faced with the choice that Jaune, now Resh, live a nice, safe life in peace far away, or be able to become a student at Signal with her on the condition she forget his survival, Ruby chooses to have her memories edited as well if that's what it takes to keep Jaune close. Because, agape. And Arc Words. And Symbolism. And one of the best damn chapters in the story, and you know it.

(There is a lingering question of 'how much does Weiss/Pyrrha and Roman know?' This is ambiguous- and there are multiple ways it could have occurred. The could know nothing- Qrow could have helped Ruby run away with Jaune and telling her to hide him on the bullhead, and then gone back for Weiss/Pyrrha/Roman with them none the wiser. Qrow could have asked Weiss/Pyrrha to keep it a secret, and blackmailed/threatened Roman with how if Roman spilled the beans, Qrow would ensure Roman's punishment would be far worse. Considering Qrow had the Lie's on standby, they too could have been put under a much smaller memory scrub of how they survived the train. Or it could have been a mixture. Call it a loose thread in Qrow's plan.)

/

The Lie Clan semblance is part of the same personal headcanon of the RWBY verse that includes the idea of Arc Words. As the brainwashing doesn't exactly solve any plot or character delimmas (in fact, it introduces current and future dramatic problems more than it resolves anything), it really isn't a deus ex machine as much as a final plot twist of Themes and Symbolism At Work.

It plays the conspiracy angle that Jaune was and still is tied up in, it touches on the role of sparingly explained semblance/supernatural elements that were progressively more in the end-stages of the story, it plays into the highly significant ideas of 'identity' and 'life after death' that abounded for Jaune across the fic, and it enables the simultaneous fulfillment of the spirit and not just the letter of all the important promises and Arc Words that Jeane, Jaune, and Ruby had in play. I feel it's a thematically appropriate end to what is, in the end, a redemption story worthy of a Legend in Remnant.

Plus, it's explicitly a temporary solution. In a matter of years, it would be breaking down and the old memories return and the risk resumes. It might be even sooner- who realizes that Ruby is already fighting against and breaking down the effects of the mind washing within days?

So say that it will all be unraveling within two years… which, totally not coincidentally, is when Ruby is looking to get into Beacon, when Yang will be back, when Cinder will probably be ready to move again, and when the hypothetical sequel would no doubt start.

That's right. Sequel. And hypothetical. While the story was finished with the open-ending to start off at Beacon Year 1 again, don't get your hopes up. I'll never write it.

Why? Because this is 'A Common Criminal Or Something,' not 'The Name's Resh Kolc or Something,' and this story is complete. It has a unique style, a unique tone, unique themes, and it's concluded. A sequel of an AU Year One would be an action-adventure comedy project that, while perhaps good on its own terms, would be radically different in feel. Let Common Criminal rest in peace, now that it's found its end.

I may write an outline of it one day, just to try. Or may not. This project is concluded regardless.

/

NSFAQs

(Not So Frequently Asked Questions)

Here's the answers to miscellaneous questions not already answered.

-What does Roman think of Jaune's decision?

Ambiguous, since it's ambiguous what Roman even knows. But probably a mixture of 'hate' and 'impressed'- he'd make Jaune suffer if he ever gets the chance, but there'd be an undercurrent of 'I didn't think he had it in him- they grow up so fast.' Roman and Jaune weren't friends- there wouldn't be personal feelings- but Jaune was a personal pet project of Roman's.

-Who was Jaune buried as? Jaune Arc, Just Jaune, or Justin John?

Jaune Arc. Jaune buried his family who died to plague, but that doesn't mean anyone else knows where he did it. Without a body and with no surviving family, his (empty) grave is wherever someone else cares enough to put it. The people who care enough about Jaune Arc can be counted on one hand, with fingers to spare.

In time, as the Breach That Wasn't is investigated, Justin John's myth will fade and Jaune Arc will be remembered as the criminal.

-Does anyone else know about Jaune's personality/identity issues?

Not really- not enough to understand, anyway. Most of the criminal types only know Jaune as, well, just Jaune. A few might know his last name, but they don't think there's any hero with a conscience lying in wait.

Ruby (and Jeane) would be the only ones to have a sense of both sides of Jaune- but they wouldn't really understand the mechanics of it or anything. Jeane just knows that it's her brother deep down. Ruby, on the other hand- she might have befriended both parts of Jaune, but she doesn't really distinguish them as separate entities. There's Jaune, the guy who was a friend to her when she had none and looked out for her, even though he was a criminal. There's Jaune Arc, the boy with ideals who needed help and made a promise with her. They aren't different people to her, they're different sides of the same coin, which they are, and she appreciates the whole.

-Is Resh supposed to be Jaune, or a different person?

Both.

It is supposed to be ambiguous- you can interpret however you'd like, and that's deliberate- but Resh is Jaune living his redemption, even if he doesn't know it. His personality would, memory quirks aside, be a mesh of Jaune Arc and Just Jaune's.

Which is to say, had I had time to flesh him out myself... he'd have recognizable traints of Jaune- both Jaune's. He'd be good-intentioned, keep his word, stands up for his friends, suffer from motion-sickness, and want to become a hero. He'd also have only a casual relationship with 'total honesty,' and be more than willing to make non-idle threats when friends are involved. And that's just from Jaune Arc. Daddy Two left him a criminal mind, a tendency to fight dirty, and an approach to morality that occasionally borders on the frighteningly amoral, especially when lives (and friends) are at stake. But there's also one person that he'd never, ever hurt or leave behind ever again- and that's Ruby, who serves as both friend and morality teather.

Resh is Jaune in the sense that a reincarnation of you is still you, even as it's different. Resh has different memories. Memories and experiences make for distinct people. But the core of it is much the same- especially since Resh's memories have their own criminal past at least somewhat analogous to Jaune's.

(More than that, kinda. This goes into the speculative, future-fic-that-doesn't-apply-to-this-story territory, but- Resh's memories and sinful past are basically 'Jaune, if he'd taken Ruby's offer of help in the jail.' Resh was a criminal caught up in something big. His friend 'Xia' tried to make him stop and oppose it outright. Resh's memories would be that he accepted her help- even though she didn't have a weapon- and that she died as a result in the attempt. So Resh's memories, and guilt, are based on what Jaune's would have been had he taken Ruby's offer and opposed the Breach by force rather than treachery. But that's headcanon of mine, not a relevant or even canonical part of Common Criminal.)

-Is Resh ever going to remember that he's Jaune?

Maybe. The future- at least outside of sequel-thinking- is up in the air and uncertain in Common Criminal.

That said… Ruby is probably going to remember the truth first. Ruby's Elysium arc has her already fighting off the effects of the mind-wipe and fighting against Qrow's memory manipulation, in days rather than years. It's ambiguous how long the effects will stay- she's not going to remember Jaune not being dead any time soon- but she's closer to the truth. Resh/Jaune, who are grateful to be alive and have this chance, aren't fighting anywhere near as hard against it.

There's also the question of Resh resisting it- though this comes in the sequal-thinking territory. Resh has his own feelings and own memory and own sense of identity- and future drama in any sequel would undoubtedly focus on him resisting being called 'fake.' His feelings and guilt for 'Xia' are real enough to him- and by the time Ruby remembers 'the truth', she'll be friends with Resh in his own right. And that's not even touching on the pragmatic issues with Resh abandoning 'his' identity.

-Is Resh Kolc an anagram for 'Sherlock'?

No shit.

(/jk)

-During the Breach, what was the deal with Raven and Yang?

Raven saved Yang from Neo, as per canon. However, since Yang's team was on the cusp of total failure and a party wipe and the Breach seemed imminent, Raven carried Yang out of there by portal. I thought it was reasonably obvious.

Now, here was something so subtle no one at all picked up on it.

In canon, Yang wakes up almost immediately after fighting Neo, and gets a glimpse of Raven. In Elysium, Yang has no memory of who saved her or how she got to the Bullhead, where she is found still asleep and doesn't wake up until later. In Moirai, its revealed Qrow had the Lie's with their memory semblance on standby. Which, when used on Ruby, left her asleep for a remarkably long amount of time.

Which niece indeed, Qrow? Which niece indeed.

-During the Breach, who died- Pyrrha or Weiss?

It really is left to the reader to decide. I have my own thoughts- it'd be made 'canonical' in a sequel- but for the purpose of Common Criminal as a stand-alone, it doesn't matter.

I'll just go and say that it wasn't Weiss leaving Yang's room when Ruby visits Beacon, though. Important words are important: I said the girl was no older than her, not no taller.

-You've got to tell me- is Blake alive?!11!1!?

I will feast on your tears and write the sequel before I ever tell you.

-But seriously- if she's not dead, what's the deal with the her ghost? That's got to mean something.

Semblance magic. Or maybe Jeane Arc pulling strings on the far side. It could mean everything, or nothing.

-Did the whole Divide per Ciphra chapter come out of the Nasuverse?

No. I've been geeking out with fantasy elements and rule-based magic longer the Nasu-verse has existed.

-Will I write a future epilogue chapter of what happens one or ten years in the future?

Absolutely not.

Writing a future-epilogue piece would be a huge thematic betrayal about this story- which is based on the uncertainty of the future. That uncertainty was a major cause for despair, but it was something consistent from start to finish, and the fact that you could have hope despite certainty was a key point of the end. The fact that the future is still uncertain is why the optimism of the ending is so important- going out and telling you 'this is how awesome the future is' robs the role of hope in the face of uncertainty. This is (one of the reasons) that the final chapter, of Ruby and Resh, is actually a flashback- it's something that already happened, that gives hope for the future, rather than tells you what the future will be.

The only sense I might ever write future content would be in the context of a sequel outline for 'The Name's Resh Kolc of Something.' But that would be a sequel, not an epilogue, and an entirely separate project with entirely new structure and themes and concerns.

And finally, a question I asked myself…

-Why did I write this Post-Mortem?

Card tricks in the dark.

If you've never heard of the concept- imagine an entertainer who can do an impressive card trick with the lights turned off. That might be impressive- a technical feat worth lauding- but what does it matter if no one can see it? It might as well be nothing.

Common Criminal was big on brevity, and certainly confusing at times. It was an ensemble of emotion, with tons of twists. But despite plenty of planning, so much of it might never have been noticed. Parts I'm proud of, even if they weren't necessarily the plot.

Take the songs. There was always a musical element behind the planning. There were even snippets of lyrics scattered through the dialogue throughout. It was subtle- so subtle that only one person ever remarked or noted it, and I'm fairly sure most never noticed. I always intended to have outright lyrics- I May Fall in particular- but there's a point where you have to be direct. Elysium is the best example of this.

Earlier drafts of Elysium didn't have Red Like Roses 2- but they weren't suspenseful either. Instead of struggling with grief, Ruby was an undaunted, almost chipper girl who didn't have any real signs of grief. Jaune might well have not died- and to be fair, he didn't- but that missed the point of Ruby not knowing that. Instead of 'is Ruby going to drown in grief' there was no real tension. Red Like Roses 2 brought the tension of 'this is a sad story.'

But, thing was, there was none of the 'Ruby's thoughts on the song' at first. You can still see it in the chapters- you can pretty much read the first half, the parts without the music, and see what it originally was. Thing was, though… the lyrics of Red Like Roses 2 were too convincing, and Ruby's refusal to go along was jarring rather than heroic. Most readers, I'm fairly sure, wouldn't have understood why it wasn't the right song.

So to help the drama, Red Like Roses 2 was brought in. But to make Red Like Roses 2 work right, it needed to be tempered with insight. Which brought the 'Ruby reflects on the Rose Song' segments. Which allowed the arc to work as intended- Ruby struggling through grief, not unchallenged but ultimately overcoming, and having a symbolic victory over Uncle Qrow's memory gambit.

I liked that. I like what I ultimately had, even if it's not perfect. But you'd never have gotten the affect that was intended if I hadn't did what I did… and you would never have known if I didn't pull aside the curtain and let you see the card trick at play.

That's the sort of reason for this Post-Mortem Autopsy.

/

And that's it. Thank you for indulging me for so long- for this fic, for the tricks, and even for this autopsy.

Shout out and thanks to PhantomGalaxy13, both for agreeing to beta this and for letting me borrow the names Resh Kolc and Xia from his story "How I Made You Meet Mom." Resh Kolc is the (fake) name of Jaune's son from the future, while Xia is his childhood friend. I highly recommend anyone give the story a chance, as it steps up its game quite well once it hits its stride. In exchange for giving him uber-spoilers and losing his reviews as a first-time reader, PG13 caught a lot of bugs and typos and bad turns of phrases. He was also kind enough to leave non-spoiler reviews from time to time. Then again, he's also the one who convinced me to put in 'Divide per Ciphra' as a one piece mind-screw rather than break it up, and he didn't argue against it at all.

He also laughed at speculations, drank in your tears, and dined on your angst, despite knowing the ending, so you can thank him for that as well.

As a thanks to my readers, I'll leave off with a cast call from me to you. Feel free to ignore it if it crosses your preferred headcanon for this fic. Just consider it the teaser of the very different sort of story that would have follow.

/

* * *

/

Cast Credits: Who was in Common Criminal, and where will they be two years later?

Jaune Arc: Dead. Really. If you don't believe me, just ask anyone who ever knew him. He was just the last of the dead Arcs, who himself died in the Breach That Wasn't. At least people have finally stopped confusing him for Justin John. His short-lived criminal career is almost as famous as the death of the Arc Family, and is synonymous with crime and a fall from virtue. No one knows what happened inside the train, but a rumor is spreading that it was Jaune's bloody cleaver that cut the brake. What that means is the real question- if he was the one to do it at all, did he do it in an attempt to stop the train, or stop it from being stopped?

Resh Kolc: Alive, best friends with Ruby Rose, and recently graduating Signal with a straight shot to Beacon. Nice enough in person, he has a reputation for being downright nasty in a fight. A good guy who's trying to make up for a bad past he doesn't like to talk about, he's a bit of a social outcast in Hunter school because of mediocrity. Despite his age he's only average for his class, an issue made worse by the lack of any recognizable semblance or even a truly signature weapon. Also struggling with nightmares of hurting people he can't remember hurting, and having trouble with his memories. Like, he doesn't remember when he started dying his hair, needing contacts for an eye problem he never notices, or why Uncle Qrow insists on regular buzz cuts- he just knows it's important. Afraid of ghosts, and swears he's haunted despite never seeing one.

Just Jaune: Laid to Rest. His red glasses remain in the Train, and his Weapon is shattered. Were anyone to find the glasses and give them to Resh, Symbolic Things would happen. Were anyone to find both his glasses and Rubrem Mors and bring them both to Resh, Even More Symbolic Things would happen. Just Jaune has always been his own spirit with a mind of his own, and even if the extension of his soul was shattered, _his_ memories were never wiped.

Ruby Rose: Alive, graduating Signal with her best friend on schedule, and definitely a Big Girl now. Recognized as a prodigy, her abilities have separated her from many of her peers- except best friend Resh Kolc, even if her abilities with a scythe overshadow his hard-earned competence. Her completely platonic relationship with her best guy friend is staying that way for the foreseeable future- not only does Resh still moon over his old dead friend Xia, Ruby has an increasing tendency to conflate him with her own old dead friend Jaune Arc. Has a tendency to hear **_[whispers]_** that no one else does, helping keep her a fellow socially awkward person with Resh.

Pyrrha Nikos: Dead or crippled, and famed as the Huntress who stopped the Breach That Wasn't regardless. Is the one to give meaning to the term Pyrrhic Victory. The public believes that it was she and her polarity semblance that hit the brakes and derailed the Train. Her statue is first and foremost in the statue of Team PWBY that stands in the Beacon courtyard- a replacement for the monument destroyed by the captured conspirators. A Legend in her own time. If dead, only Yang and Weiss remember the lonely girl she really was. If the survivor, the crippled Champion is trying to keep the memory of her late partner and friend alive by keeping a promise.

Weiss Schnee: Dead or crippled. Her sacrifice in stopping the Breach That Wasn't brought honor to the Schnees- which has only further enabled her Father to escalate his war with the White Fang. If she is the one who died, only Yang and Pyrrha remember the Schnee Angel as the acerbic girl with a strong sense of justice. If alive, the no-longer Heiress apparent struggles to retain influence and gather allies within SDC… at would have, if she hadn't received an offer from the person she least expected to help. The reason she survived her fall in battle is one she refuses to talk about, but every day she wakes up she offers a prayer of thanks that the train stopped just in time.

Blake Beladonna: MIA. No one's found the body, and only the elite of the White Fang knows for sure.

Yang Xiao Long: Alive, beautiful, and troubled. Famous as the Sole Survivor, a name she hates, for being the last active member of Team PWBY and for being the only one known to (be able to) walk away from the Breach-That-Wasn't. She's spent the last two years investigating the White Fang and her own past, with indecisive results. Has a good opinion of Resh Kolc for helping Ruby get over Jaune Arc, who Yang has a less than positive opinion of due to bitter memories of two years ago. Even if she's not as strong as she would have been had she not dropped out, when Yang finally comes back to Beacon to fulfill her promise to Ruby, she is going to kick so much ass.

Lie Ren: An upperclassman at Beacon, works part time as a bar tender at seedy bars in Vale where the money is better than the customer. Former classmate, current contact, and occasional sparring partner for Yang to keep her skills up over the years. Takes a special interest in freshman Resh Kolc, claiming their families were old friends, even though the closest Resh remembers is a black-haired girl, not boy.

Nora Valkerie: Ren's closest friend and fellow third-year. They're together. Maybe not together together, but she's probably the reason he needs money. She may seem too crazy to follow sometimes, but sometimes she's the only one who can follow the craziest things.

Uncle Qrow: Melancholic as Ruby and Resh prepare to graduate. Has been preparing Ruby and Resh for Beacon, even as he runs his private spy network and investigates the Breach That Wasn't. Has weird healthcare beliefs, a special interest in Resh's problems, and a tendency for cryptic wise guy advice. Has a tendency to hum when left to his own thoughts.

Headmaster Ozpin: Still Beacon's Headmaster. The near miss of the Breach That Wasn't was a shock to his standing and his personal sense of control, and trying to track the culprits has only added to the stress and grey hairs. Still a good man, but the near-catastrophe have left him less risk-tolerant than he once was. Has started a collection of relics and weapons of fallen heroes as a new hobby of his. Also has a troubling interest in Resh Kolc's past, much to Ruby's unease.

General Ironwood: Known as the General no matter what Kingdom he's in, because he organized and leads an autonomous international taskforce to both investigate the Breach That Wasn't and to stop the White Fang's attempts to spark a faunus revolution. Close partner with Schnee Dust Corporation, who shares the later goal in so much as it helps President Schnee's agenda. Has held his trump card close, but believes its coming time to release her.

Penny: Alive. Hasn't seen Ruby since she was pulled out of the Vytal Festival post-Breach That Wasn't, but has stayed in correspondence. Looking forward to returning to Vale to see her first friend again, keep her promise to return for second friend Jaune Arc (whose body was never recovered), and finally meet Resh Kolc. About the second, Ruby tells her that it's important to keep your promises, even if the person is already dead, so she's willing to return and bring back whatever she can. If only she can just find something of his that would have his signature…

Hei 'Junior' Xiong: Alive, owner of The Club, and Ren's employer. Makes his living on the crossroads of legality and the criminal underworld. Ever since word started spreading that it was Jaune's Bloody Cleaver that cut the brake on the train, he's been entertaining the customers with the tale of the most famous common criminal of all, who started right here. Slightly embellishes the tale to make himself look better by association.

Roman Torchwick: Alive, imprisoned, and the only one to know The Truth, even if he's not saying until there's enough in it for him. Locked in solitary for the last two years with no one to talk to but the rare visits from the Moirai, he's changed. Ever since his Weapon was stolen, he hasn't just lost a part of his soul- he may have lost a part of his mind as well.

Neo: Alive, on the loose. Roman's accomplice is said to be uncatchable, extremely dangerous- and looking for someone. Several someones. No one knows who or why, because she ain't talking.

Cinder Fall: Alive, on the loose. The master conspirator whose plans were foiled in the Breach That Wasn't has gone to ground for the last two years. Now she has a new plan, and needs some old pawns to help with her new ones.

Mercury Black, Emerald: Alive, imprisoned. Beaten in the Beacon Courtyard in a battle that destroyed the Hero Statue, they know they were betrayed- but not by who.

Adam Tauros: Alive, on the loose. A nominal leader of the White Fang has a curious interest in the late Arcs- and not merely the sort of satisfying blood lust or revenge against one in particular. Known to spend much of his personal time alone in off-limits areas guarded by security robots.

Jeane Arc: Dead. Having given up her Word, and on close watch by the World for her earlier trickery, her ability to manipulate events is **_[minimal]_**. Totally rooting on Resh to find a nice girl, even if only one can hear her.

Bloody Tukson: Dead. Moved on. Except sometimes in Resh's dreams, and isn't that an awkward thing to explain for the guy who never met the man who died in the building right beside the alleyway where Ruby Rose once met Jaune Arc?

Sun Wukong: Dead. Could move on if he wanted, but may have some unfinished business with the whole Blake deal. Ghost most likely to prank Resh Kolc.

Blake Beladonna's Ghost: ?

(Yang Xiao Long swears she's sometimes seen her dead partner around when she visits Qrow's place after a few too many drinks.)

Crescent Rose: Lost somewhere between Mountain Glenn and Vale. Even though Ruby has forged Crescent Rose Mk.2, she still misses her first baby. About the only place she hasn't checked is the last place anyone remembers seeing Roman Torchwick, the man who took it- the Train.

Rubrem Mors: Shattered. The remains of the growing underworld legend are safely sealed in Professor Ozpins private collection. Ozpin occasional takes it out to remind himself how close he was to failing Vale- and each time he does, he swears he can still see blood on it.

Crocea Mors: Dormant. The extension of the soul of Arc, of all the Arcs, still slumbers since it last shined two years ago. No matter how hard anyone else tries, only an Arc can wake and wield its power. Which may be a problem, or a very good thing, considering that while there are no more Arcs, there are people beginning to grasp the implications of what happened the night of the Breach That Wasn't.

And one important character who appeared just once, and not even name…

Winter Schnee. Alive, but shouldn't be. The two-years younger sister of Weiss Schnee is supposed to be the new Heiress of the Schnee Dust Corporation, but has thrown herself into training to be a Huntress instead since the events of two years ago. No one has asked her why she wants to follow in her sister's footsteps and train as a Huntress- fewer still even care- but she does, and not just because it's in her own interest. Ever since the crippled survivor of Team PWBY unlocked her Aura, Winter hasn't dreamed of her life since Breach That Wasn't, but of one that ended in a Breach That Was…

/

* * *

/

End Post-Mortem


End file.
